Harrick Plasma’s equipment has been cited in hundreds of articles as a vital step in the fabrication of PDMS-based microfluidic devices. Microfluidic devices often consist of a microchanneled layer of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) atop a glass slide. The glass slide supports the microchanneled layer and allows the device to be easily carried throughout the lab. Researchers plasma-treat their glass slides and microchanneled PDMS to irreversibly bond the two materials together, forming a watertight seal. This bond is created by the formation of silanol (SiOH) groups during the plasma treatment process.
