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  • Perspective
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Reconfigurable microfluidics

Nature Reviews Chemistry volume 6, pages 70–80 (2022)Cite this article

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Abstract

Lab-on-a-chip devices leverage microfluidic technologies to enable chemical and biological processes at small scales. However, existing microfluidic channel networks are typically designed for the implementation of a single function or a well-defined protocol and do not allow the flexibility and real-time experimental decision-making essential to many scientific applications. In this Perspective, we highlight that reconfigurability and programmability of microfluidic platforms can support new functionalities that are beyond the reach of current lab-on-a-chip systems. We describe the ideal fully reconfigurable microfluidic device that can change its shape and function dynamically, which would allow researchers to tune a microscale experiment with the capacity to make real-time decisions. We review existing technologies that can dynamically control microscale flows, suggest additional physical mechanisms that could be leveraged towards the goal of reconfigurable microfluidics and highlight the importance of these efforts for the broad scientific community.

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Fig. 1: Timeline of key achievements and trends in the development of microfluidic technologies.
Fig. 2: Our vision of a reconfigurable microfluidic platform.
Fig. 3: State of the art in reconfigurable microfluidic systems.
Fig. 4: Potential mechanisms for dynamic manipulation of physical and virtual boundaries.

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Acknowledgements

This Perspective was greatly influenced by many discussions with Prof. H. Shea (EPFL) in the context of a joint research proposal. F.P., V.B. and G.V.K. acknowledge E. Delamarche and H. Riel for their continuous support. The authors thank Prof. S. N. Krylov (York University) for useful discussion and suggestions. They thank I. Pereiro for his help on the preparation of the graphical abstract. Finally, they thank L. Rudin for proofreading the manuscript. This project has received funding from the European Research Council under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme, grant agreement 678734 (MetamorphChip). G.V.K. gratefully acknowledges funding from a SNF grant (CRSK-2_190877). F.P. gratefully acknowledges the BRIDGE Proof-of-Concept programme, project number 40B1-0 191549, funded by Innosuisse and the Swiss National Science Foundation.

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  1. These authors contributed equally: Federico Paratore and Vesna Bacheva

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  1. IBM Research Europe, Rüschlikon, Switzerland

    Federico Paratore, Vesna Bacheva & Govind V. Kaigala

  2. Technion–Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel

    Vesna Bacheva & Moran Bercovici

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  1. Federico Paratore
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Paratore, F., Bacheva, V., Bercovici, M. et al. Reconfigurable microfluidics. Nat Rev Chem 6, 70–80 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41570-021-00343-9

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