Fabrication of Microfluidic Channels by Femtosecond Laser Micromachining and Application in Optofluidics

Micromachining with femtosecond laser can be exploited to fabricate optical components and microfluidic channels in fused silica, due to internal modification of the glass properties that is induced by the laser beam. In this paper, we refer to the formation of microfluidic channels, where an optimization of the fabrication procedure was conducted by examining etch rate and surface roughness as a function of the irradiation conditions. Microfluidic channels with high and uniform aspect ratio and with smooth sidewalls were obtained, and such structures were successfully integrated with optical components. The obtained results set the foundations towards the development of new optofluidic devices.