Description of the course

The aim of the interdisciplinary short course is to give a practical introduction on microfluidics and the often astonishing effects that make the flow physics in many situations completely different from the macroscopic world. It further includes an overview of different manufacturing techniques and chip designs to enable the participants to design and built their own microfluidic devices for their individual purposes, e.g. in biochemistry. Since the flow field characterization in these devices is of paramount importance the course will also introduce different advanced optical methods such as particle image velocimetry (PIV), particle tracking velocimetry (PTV) and three-dimensional techniques.

The theoretical introduction is complemented by practical sessions in which the participants can get first hands on experiences on the flow field measurements techniques, will built their own chips with soft lithography, learn about data processing and get the possibility to perform laboratory work in the field of microfluidics. The participants will also have the opportunity to visit the technology center (Center of Micro- and Nanotechnolgy) with 1,200 m² of clean room facilities, see a large variety of different manufacturing techniques and to discuss with experts of different fields. Manufacturers producing equipment and measurement techniques for microfluidics will introduce their products and the exchange with experienced researchers and other participants will widen the scientific horizon.

Topics

• fundamentals of microfluidics
• micro systems technologies (MEMS, MOEMS)
• flow and particle manipulation (magnetohydrodynamics, acoustofluidics, electrokinetics)
• manufacturing techniques for microfluidic devices
• experimental characterization of micro flows using µPIV, µPTV and advanced three-dimensional techniques

Who should attend?

The course is intended for PhD students, scientists and industrial researchers who have already started to work in the field of microfluidics, or plan to do that in the near future and want to get familiar with the diverse possibilities of microfluidics. Different topics and challenges will be addressed during the course ranging from the fabrication of microfluidic systems to their experimental characterization, enabling the participants to identify difficulties and solutions in advance of own future projects. The adressed research areas comprise fluid dynamics, optical systems for sensing purposes, biochemistry, microfabrication and adjoining fields. 

Please send your questions to microfluidics@tu-ilmenau.de.