Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology 1 article published in JoVE Chemistry Microfluidic Pneumatic Cages: A Novel Approach for In-chip Crystal Trapping, Manipulation and Controlled Chemical Treatment Afshin Abrishamkar1,2, Markos Paradinas3, Elena Bailo4, Romen Rodriguez-Trujillo5, Raphael Pfattner5, René M. Rossi1, Carmen Ocal5, Andrew J. deMello2, David B. Amabilino6, Josep Puigmartí-Luis1 1Empa - Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, 2Institute of Chemical and Bioengineering, Department of Chemistry and Applied Bioscience, ETH Zurich, 3ICN2-Institut Catala de Nanociencia i Nanotecnologia, 4WITec GmbH, 5Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona, 6School of Chemistry, The University of Nottingham Herein, we describe the fabrication and operation of a double-layer microfluidic system made of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). We demonstrate the potential of this device for trapping, directing the coordination pathway of a crystalline molecular material and controlling chemical reactions onto on-chip trapped structures.
