Miniaturized pumps and valves, based on conductive polimer actuators, for lab-on-chip application

We developed a new type of conductive polymer (CP) actuator, specifically designed for miniaturized pumps and valves for lab-on-a-chip (LoC) applications. CP films soaked in an electrolyte solution reversibly change their thickness upon bias application. A large stroke actuator was fabricated by stacking several CP layers, bonded together by means of epoxy dots. The CP deposition process was optimized for obtaining the low surface roughness required for stacking. The maximum strain of stacked actuators and of individual layers was identical (13%), indicating that the dot gluing process eliminates strain losses previously observed in multi-layers actuators. Pumps and valves were fabricated and mounted on a microfluidic chip.