Semi-contact-writing of polymer molds for prototyping PDMS chips with low surface roughness, sharp edges and locally varying channel heights

J Micromech Microeng.       online article

Microfluidic systems fabricated in polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) enable a broad variety of applications and are widespread in the field of Lab-on-a-Chip. Here we demonstrate semi-contact-writing, a novel method for fabrication of polymer based molds for casting microfluidic PDMS chips in a highly flexible, time and cost-efficient manner. This technique facilitates on-demand prototyping in a low-cost manner and is therefore ideally suited for rapid chip layout iterations. No cleanroom facilities and less expertise are required.