Method of manufacturing microfluidic chip and a microfluidic chip made thereby

Abstract

A method of manufacturing a microfluidic chip includes: providing an upper mold having multiple upper ribs extending along a second direction, and a lower mold having multiple lower ribs extending along a first direction different from the second direction; forming a forming material in a filling space defined by the upper and lower molds to provide a channeled plate having multiple upper microfluidic channels complementary in shape to the upper ribs, lower microfluidic channels complementary in shape to the lower ribs, and multiple thin film valves formed at intersections where the upper microfluidic channels intersect the lower microfluidic channels; separating the upper and lower molds; and covering the lower and upper microfluidic channels.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A microfluidic chip comprising:
 a carrier plate;   a channeled plate disposed on said carrier plate and having
 an upper surface, 
 a lower surface opposite to said upper surface, 
 a gaseous fluid channel unit having an array of upper microfluidic channels indented from said upper surface, said upper microfluidic channels being intercommunicated, spaced apart along a first direction and extending along a second direction different from the first direction, 
 a liquid fluid channel unit having an array of lower microfluidic channels indented from said lower surface and discommunicated from said upper microfluidic channels, said lower microfluidic channels being intercommunicated, spaced apart along the second direction, extending along the first direction, and intersecting said upper microfluidic channels at a plurality of intersections, and 
 an array of thin film valves formed at the intersections; and 
   an upper cover attached to said upper surface and sealing said upper microfluidic channels.   
     
     
         2 . The microfluidic chip as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein the first direction is transverse to the second direction. 
     
     
         3 . The microfluidic chip as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said gaseous fluid channel unit further has a confluence channel that is indented from said upper surface and that intercommunicates said upper microfluidic channels. 
     
     
         4 . The microfluidic chip as claimed in  claim 3 , wherein said upper cover has an opening that is in spatial communication with said confluence channel of said gaseous fluid channel unit. 
     
     
         5 . The microfluidic chip as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said liquid fluid channel unit further has a plurality of bending channels that are indented from said lower surface, that are discommunicated from said upper microfluidic channels, and that intercommunicate said lower microfluidic channels. 
     
     
         6 . The microfluidic chip as claimed in  claim 5 , wherein said bending channels are arranged in two rows to intercommunicate adjacent two of said lower microfluidic channels. 
     
     
         7 . The microfluidic chip as claimed in  claim 6 , wherein said two rows of said bending channels are arranged along the second direction. 
     
     
         8 . The microfluidic chip as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said liquid fluid channel unit further has an array of reaction slots that are indented from said lower surface, that are discommunicated from said upper microfluidic channels, and that are in spatial communication with said lower microfluidic channels. 
     
     
         9 . The microfluidic chip as claimed in  claim 8 , wherein said array of reaction slots is arranged in multiple rows arranged along the second direction. 
     
     
         10 . The microfluidic chip as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said liquid fluid channel unit further has a first entrance channel, a second entrance channel, a mixing channel that is spatially communicated between said first and second entrance channels and one of said lower microfluidic channels. 
     
     
         11 . The microfluidic chip as claimed in  claim 10 , wherein:
 said channeled plate further has two side surfaces that are opposite to each other and that each interconnect said upper and lower surfaces;   each of said first and second entrance channels has a starting section that is formed in one of said side surfaces, and an ending section that spatially communicates said starting section and said mixing channel.   
     
     
         12 . The microfluidic chip as claimed in  claim 11 , wherein said liquid fluid channel unit further has an exiting channel that has a first exiting section that is formed in the other one of said side surfaces, and a second exiting section that is spatially communicated with said first exiting section and an end of another one of said lower microfluidic channels opposite to said one of said lower microfluidic channels spatially communicated with said mixing channel. 
     
     
         13 . The microfluidic chip as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein:
 each of said upper microfluidic channels has a width (W 1 ) measured in the first direction;   each of said lower microfluidic channels has a width (W 2 ) measured in the second direction;   said upper microfluidic channels are spaced apart from said lower microfluidic channels by a distance (T);
   2≤ W 1/ T≤ 25; and
 
   2≤ W 2/ T≤ 25.
 
   
     
     
         14 . The microfluidic chip as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said channeled plate is made of at least one of polysiloxane, polydimethylsiloxane or polyurethane. 
     
     
         15 . The microfluidic chip as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said channeled plate is made of a thermoplastic material. 
     
     
         16 . The microfluidic chip as claimed in  claim 15 , wherein said channeled plate is made of styrenic thermoplastic elastomer.