Acoustic Thermoagitation based on Piezoelectric beta-PVDF Polymer Films - Potential Evaluation in Lab-on-a-Chip Applications

This paper describes a lab-on-a-chip device with acoustic thermoagitation based on a piezoelectric β-PVDF polymer. The device is used for testing and monitoring biochemical parameters in biological fluids using optical absorption spectrophotometry. Experimental results regarding the influence of the electrical signal amplitude and frequency applied for the generation of acoustic thermoagitation is presented. The individual contribution of the heating and the microagitation provided by the actuation of the piezoelectric film for the fluids mixture was determined. The paper is completed with a study of the β-PVDF degradation with transparent conductive electrodes, ITO and AZO, when placed in contact with uric acid fluids. The final goal of using this technique is the improvement of mixing and reaction time without interfering with biochemical reactions and analytical measurements.