Selective control of the contact and transport between droplet pairs by electrowetting-on-dielectric for droplet-array sandwiching technology

Abstract

Methodological advances in on-chip technology enable high-throughput drug screening, such as droplet-array sandwiching technology. Droplet-array sandwiching technology involves upper and lower substrates with a droplet-array designed for a one-step process. This technology is, however, limited to batch manipulation of the droplet-array. Here, we propose a method for selective control of individual droplets, which allows different conditions for individual droplet pairs. Electrowetting-on-dielectric (EWOD) technology is introduced to control the height of the droplets so that the contact between droplet-pairs can be individually controlled. Circular patterns 4 mm in diameter composed of electrodes for EWOD and hydrophilic-hydrophobic patterns for droplet formation 4 μl in volume were developed. We demonstrate the selective control of the droplet height by EWOD for an applied voltage up to 160 V and selective control of the contact and transport of substances. Presented results will provide useful method for advanced drug screening, including cell-based screening.