Scale-effects on oscillation characteristics of externally driven micropump

Actuators in contact with a microchannel or chambers are useful to introduce fluid motion inside microTAS (micro total analysis systems) and LOC (lab on chips). There have been a lot of reports on these externally driven micropumps in the last decade. When the actuators are miniaturized for the integration of LOC, obtaining the oscillating characteristics of the system, which consist of actuator, channel, and fluid inside the channel, is significantly important. The purpose in this paper is to evaluate the effect of downscaling on resonant characteristics of the complex system composed of an actuator, a channel, and fluid inside the channel. This paper presents a limit in miniaturization of a cantilever actuator for a micropump and important instructions leading to a design-guide of externally driven micropump.