Microfluidic Devices for Accessible Medical Diagnostics

Abstract

This thesis covers devices exploring basic areas of physical and biological research including: surface plasmon enhanced InGaN light-emitting diode, analysis of using AlGaN emitters coupled with thin film heaters to cure onychomycosis infections, tunable organic transistors that use microfluidic source and drain electrodes, as well as an electrical microfluidic pressure gauge for PDMS MEMS. Also analyzed are devices created through the use of novel three-dimensional rapid prototyping techniques, such as: the replication of three-dimensional valves from printed wax molds, chemically robust three-dimensional monolithic SIFEL fluoropolymer microfluidics, microfluidic valves for customized radioactive positron emission dyes, reduction of microfluidic control inputs through the use of pressure multiplexing, bicuspid-inspired microfluidic check valves and microfluidic three-dimensional separation column. Devices created to analyze blood are also treated including: a microfluidic device to extract blood plasma from a fingerstick; inexpensive, portable immunoassay devices and their use in in small cell lung carcinoma and multiple sclerosis; as well as a device to screen metastasizing cancer cells. Devices created to perform polymerase chain reactions are also studied, including: an evaporative cooler for microfluidic channels, thermal management in microfluidics using micro-Peltier junctions in a microfluidic polymerase chain reaction system, and an accessible polymerase chain reaction system.