Electrowetting in microfluidics
The interaction of fluids with electromagnetic fields enables liquid manipulation without the use of conventional mechanical parts. Electrostatic enhancement of wetting (electrowetting) recently enabled the development of many microfluidics applications ranging from "lab-on-a-chip" devices to reflective displays and electrically tunable liquid optical lenses. Our research focuses on the illumination of phenomena that limit electrowetting systems or lead to instabilities accompanied by symmetry breaking or eventually, liquid free surface rupture. Such instabilities are crucial in the operation of basic liquid handling micro-devices performing droplet moving, splitting or joining. The goal is to facilitate electrowetting applications and design efficient micro-actuators in terms of low power consumption or large contact angle modification.
Selected Publications
- A. I. Drygiannakis, A. G. Papathanasiou and A. G. Boudouvis "Manipulating equilibrium states of microdroplets in electrowetting - A computational analysis." Microelectronic Engineering, 86, 1356, 2009.[link]
- A. I. Drygiannakis, A. G. Papathanasiou and A. G. Boudouvis "On the connection between dielectric breakdown strength, trapping of charge and contact angle saturation in electrowetting." Langmuir, 25 (1), 2009. [link]
- A. I. Drygiannakis, A. G. Papathanasiou and A. G. Boudouvis "Mechanisms of equilibrium shape transitions ofliquid droplets in electrowetting." Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, 326, 451, 2008. [link]
- A. G. Papathanasiou, A. T. Papaioannou and A. G. Boudouvis "Illuminating the connection between contact angle saturation and dielectric breakdown in electrowetting through leakage current measurements" Journal of Applied Physics, 103, 034901, 2008.[link]
- A. G. Papathanasiou and A. G. Boudouvis "Manifestation of the connection between dielectric breakdown strength and contact angle saturation in electrowetting" Applied Physics Letters, 86, 164102, 2005. [link]
Funding
- "Design of electrowetting actuators on dielectric surfaces"
General Secretariat for Research and Technology, Program "ENTEP", 2006-2008.
Principal Investigator: A. G. Boudouvis, NTUA. Invited Research Fellow: A. G. Papathanasiou. - "Fabrication, properties and actuation technologies in microfluidics"
General Secretariat for Research and Technology, Program "ΠENEΔ", 2005-2008.
Principal Investigator: A. Tserepi, Institute of Microelectronics (IMEL), NCSR "Demokritos".
Senior Researchers: A. G. Boudouvis, A. G. Papathanasiou. Partners: NTUA and IMEL. - "Design of electrowetting-based micromechanisms for wetting enhancement in hydrophobic dielectrics"
General Secretariat for Research and Technology, Program "ENTEP", 2003-2005.
Principal Investigator: A. G. Boudouvis, NTUA. Invited Research Fellow: A. G. Papathanasiou.