A low temperature surface modification assisted method for bonding plastic substrates

Abstract

A low cost, low temperature process for sealing microfluidic devices composed of at least one organic polymeric substrate is presented. The process is based on the surface modification of the organic substrate by means of a silane solution, resulting in irreversible bonding. It is a generic method of bonding polymeric/plastic substrates, bare or structured ones, such as poly(methylmethacrylate) (PMMA), polystyrene (PS) or epoxy-type polymers, to Si-containing substrates, such as poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS), Si and glass. In the case that bonding between organic polymer (PMMA, PS, etc) substrates is desired, an intermediate thin PDMS layer is required.