Microfluidic Devices and Their Applications

Microfluidics and nanofluidics is a field of science that operates in the micrometer and nanometer scale. A microfluidic–nanofluidic device consists of components such as valves, pumps and mixers for manipulating and transporting the fluid at this scale. In this chapter we review the history, physics, fabrication methods and applications of microfluidics and nanofluidics. This interdisciplinary field has a wide range of application areas including environmental sensing, medical diagnostics, drug discovery, drug delivery, microscale chemical production, combinatorial synthesis and assays, artificial organs, and micropropulsion, microscale energy systems. The global market for microfluidic devices was estimated at around $3.1 billion dollars in 2015 and is expected to rise to $7.5 billion dollars by 2020. In the future, microfluidics and nanofluidics will see miniaturization and development of novel microfabrication techniques along with more sensitive detection methods and diagnosis of diseases in a point-of-care platform. Developments in the fundamental physics of fluid flow and its control, microfabrication methods, microfluidic components, and applications in new and emerging areas are all anticipated.