Active mixing in microfluidic systems using surface acoustic waves

The growing demand for miniaturization and acceleration in chemical and biological analysis requires new methods for pumping and mixing in Micro Total Analysis Systems and Lab-on-Chip. The interaction of surface acoustic waves (SAW) with liquids atop lead to the excitation of longitudinal pressure waves in the liquid. These high frequency pressure waves generate an acoustic streaming which allows mixing, pumping and even atomization of liquids. However, several issues concerning assembly, signal generation, power durability and handling of such acoustic devices turned out to be rather difficult. In this study, we present our solutions for these issues.