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Title: Optofluidic-Tunable Color Filters And Spectroscopy Based On Liquid-Crystal Microflows

Journal Article · · Lab on a Chip, 13(14):2721-2726
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1039/C3LC50501D· OSTI ID:1087255
 [1];  [2];  [1]
  1. Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL) (Switzerland)
  2. Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

The integration of color filters with microfluidics has attracted substantial attention in recent years, for on-chip absorption, fluorescence, or Raman analysis. We describe such tunable filters based on the micro-flow of liquid crystals. The filter operation is based on the wavelength dependent liquid crystal birefringence that can be tuned by modifying the flow velocity field in the microchannel. The latter is possible both temporally and spatially by varying the inlet pressure and the channel geometry respectively. We explored the use of these optofluidic filters for on-chip absorption spectroscopy; by integrating the distance dependent color filter with a dye-filled micro-channel, the absorption spectrum of a dye could be measured. Liquid crystal microflows simplify substantially the optofluidic integration, actuation and tuning of color filters for lab-on-a-chip spectroscopic applications.

Research Organization:
Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States). Environmental Molecular Sciences Lab. (EMSL)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
DOE Contract Number:
AC05-76RL01830
OSTI ID:
1087255
Report Number(s):
PNNL-SA-93572; 47768
Journal Information:
Lab on a Chip, 13(14):2721-2726, Vol. 13, Issue 14; ISSN ‎1473-0197
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English