US20220126287A1

US20220126287A1 - Micro-fluidic chip, liquid loading method thereof and micro-fluidic system

Info

Publication number: US20220126287A1
Application number: US17/271,297
Authority: US
Inventors: Yue Li; Wenliang YAO; Nan Zhao; Yongjia Gao; Le Gu; Hui Liao; Bolin Fan; Yingying Zhao
Original assignee: BOE Technology Group Co Ltd; Beijing BOE Sensor Technology Co Ltd
Current assignee: BOE Technology Group Co Ltd; Beijing BOE Sensor Technology Co Ltd
Priority date: 2020-05-13
Filing date: 2020-05-13
Publication date: 2022-04-28
Also published as: US20220314217A1; CN113939366A; CN114126760A; EP4112176A4; EP4112176A1; WO2021227567A1; JP2023524187A; WO2021226871A1

Abstract

Provided is a micro-fluidic chip, including a first substrate and a second substrate opposite to each other. A liquid storage cavity is formed between the first substrate and the second substrate, and a liquid inlet hole penetrating through the first substrate in a thickness direction is formed in the first substrate. The first substrate includes a first electrode layer and a hydrophobic layer that are sequentially disposed in the thickness direction of the first substrate, and the first electrode layer is on a surface of the hydrophobic layer away from the second substrate. The second substrate includes an adjustment layer and a second electrode layer that are sequentially disposed in a thickness direction of the second substrate, and the second electrode layer is on a surface of the adjustment layer away from the first substrate. A micro-fluidic system and a control method of the micro-fluidic chip are also provided.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This is a National Phase application filed under 35 U.S.C. 371 as a national stage of PCT/CN2020/090005, filed on May 13, 2020, the entire contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to the field of micro-fluidic technology, and in particular, to a micro-fluidic chip, a liquid loading method of the micro-fluidic chip, and a micro-fluidic system.

BACKGROUND

In order to detect liquid extracted from an organism, the liquid needs to be placed in a container having a small volume, and it is sometimes difficult to load the liquid into the container having a small volume due to the surface state of the container and the wetting property of the liquid.

SUMMARY

An object of the present disclosure is to provide a micro-fluidic chip, a method for loading liquid into a micro-fluidic chip and a micro-fluidic system.
As a first aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a micro-fluidic chip, including a first substrate and a second substrate opposite to each other. A liquid storage cavity is between the first substrate and the second substrate, and a liquid inlet hole penetrating through the first substrate in a thickness direction of the first substrate is in the first substrate. The first substrate includes a first electrode layer and a hydrophobic layer that are sequentially disposed in the thickness direction of the first substrate, and the first electrode layer is on a surface of the hydrophobic layer away from the second substrate. The second substrate includes an adjustment layer and a second electrode layer that are sequentially disposed in a thickness direction of the second substrate, and the second electrode layer is on a surface of the adjustment layer away from the first substrate. In a case where the adjustment layer is in an electric field having a predetermined strength, a surface of the adjustment layer facing the first substrate exhibits one of hydrophilicity and hydrophobicity, and in a case where the electric field having the predetermined strength is removed, the surface of the adjustment layer facing the first substrate exhibits the other one of hydrophilicity and hydrophobicity.
In an embodiment, a liquid storage recess is on a surface of the first substrate facing the second substrate, and the liquid inlet hole penetrates through a top wall of the liquid storage recess.
In an embodiment, a shape of the top wall of the liquid storage recess is of a convex polygon, the top wall includes at least one inner angle that is a non-right angle, and one of inner angles of the top wall that are non-right angles is a liquid inlet angle, the liquid inlet hole is at the liquid inlet angle, a plurality of side walls of the liquid storage recess are at respective sides of the top wall, and the plurality side walls are perpendicular to the top wall.
In an embodiment, the top wall of the liquid storage recess is of a convex pentagon, the top wall includes two inner angles that are right angles and adjacent to each other, and the liquid inlet angle is opposite to a side of the top wall between the two right angles.
In an embodiment, the first substrate further includes a convex plate on a surface of the first substrate away from the second substrate, and the liquid inlet hole penetrates through a portion of the first substrate where the convex plate is disposed.
In an embodiment, the liquid inlet hole includes a conical hole portion and a cylindrical hole portion that are coaxially arranged, the conical hole portion is at one end of the cylindrical hole portion away from the second substrate, and a hole diameter of the conical hole portion is gradually reduced in a direction from the first substrate to the second substrate.
In an embodiment, the first substrate further includes a first base substrate, and the first electrode layer is on the first base substrate.
In an embodiment, a material of the hydrophobic layer is the same as a material of adjustment layer.
In an embodiment, the second electrode layer includes a plurality of second electrode bars, at least one of the plurality of second electrode bars is opposite to the liquid inlet hole, and any two adjacent second electrode bars of the plurality of second electrode bars are insulated and spaced apart from each other.
In an embodiment, an insulating spacer layer is between the second electrode layer and the adjustment layer.
In an embodiment, a thickness of the insulating spacer layer is larger than a thickness of the adjustment layer.
In an embodiment, the adjustment layer is made of a fluorine-based material.
In an embodiment, a thickness of the adjustment layer is between 50 nm and 800 nm.
In an embodiment, the first substrate is connected to and sealed with the second substrate through a sealant.
In an embodiment, in a first direction perpendicular to the thickness direction of the first substrate, a distance from the liquid inlet hole to one end of the liquid storage cavity is larger than a distance from the liquid inlet hole to another end of the liquid storage cavity.
In an embodiment, a gas outlet hole penetrating through the first substrate in the thickness direction of the first substrate is in the first substrate.
As a second aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a micro-fluidic system, including a liquid loading device and any one of the micro-fluidic chips described herein, where a liquid loading nozzle of the liquid loading device is capable of being inserted into the liquid inlet hole.
As a third aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a control method of the micro-fluidic chip. The control method includes: providing a first reference voltage to the first electrode layer, and providing a second reference voltage to a portion of the second electrode layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole, so that a portion of the adjustment layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole exhibits hydrophilicity; after liquid entering the liquid storage cavity through the liquid inlet hole is in contact with the portion of the adjustment layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole, providing the second reference voltage to a portion of the second electrode layer adjacent to the portion of the second electrode layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole, so that a portion of the adjustment layer adjacent to the portion of the adjustment layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole exhibits hydrophilicity.
In an embodiment, the control method further includes: removing the second reference voltage applied to the portion of the second electrode layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole, after the liquid entering the liquid storage cavity through the liquid inlet hole is in contact with the portion of the adjustment layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole.
As a fourth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided an electronic apparatus, including: a storage device having an executable program stored thereon; and one or more processors that, when executing the executable program, cause the one or more processors to implement the control method described herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the present disclosure and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, together with the detailed description serve to explain the present disclosure, but do not constitute a limitation of the present disclosure. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an embodiment of a micro-fluidic chip provided by the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating the injection of liquid into the micro-fluidic chip shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating another embodiment of a micro-fluidic chip provided by the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating the injection of liquid into the micro-fluidic chip shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating a structure of a first substrate;

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing the relative positional relationship between the top wall of the liquid storage recess and the liquid inlet hole;

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating a micro-fluidic system provided by the present disclosure; and

FIG. 8 is a schematic flow chart illustrating a control method of the micro-fluidic chip provided by the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The specific embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are used for the purpose of illustrating and explaining the present disclosure, rather than limiting the present disclosure.
As an aspect of the present disclosure, a micro-fluidic chip is provided, which includes a first substrate 110 and a second substrate 120 opposite to each other, as shown in FIG. 1. A liquid storage cavity A is formed between the first substrate 110 and the second substrate 120, and a liquid inlet hole B penetrating through the first substrate 110 in a thickness direction (i.e., an up-down direction in FIG. 1) is formed in the first substrate 110.
The first substrate 110 includes a first electrode layer 113 and a hydrophobic layer 111 that are sequentially disposed in a thickness direction (i.e., a vertical direction shown in FIG. 1) of the first substrate 110, the first electrode layer 113 being arranged on a surface of the hydrophobic layer away from the second substrate 120.
The second substrate 120 includes an adjustment layer 121 and a second electrode layer 122 that are sequentially disposed in a thickness direction of the second substrate 120. When the adjustment layer 121 is in an electric field having a predetermined strength, the surface of the adjustment layer 121 facing the first substrate 110 exhibits one of hydrophilicity and hydrophobicity, and when the electric field having the predetermined strength is removed, the surface of the adjustment layer 121 facing the first substrate 110 exhibits the other of hydrophilicity and hydrophobicity.
It should be noted that the surface of the hydrophobic layer 111 facing the second substrate 120 (i.e., the lower surface of the hydrophobic layer 111) and the surface of the adjustment layer 121 facing the first substrate 110 (i.e., the upper surface of the adjustment layer 121) are inner surfaces of the liquid storage cavity, and may be in direct contact with the liquid loaded into the micro-fluidic chip.
In the present disclosure, liquid is loaded into the micro-fluidic chip through the liquid inlet hole B, and after the liquid enters the liquid storage cavity, the liquid is in contact with the lower surface of the first substrate 110. Since the lower surface of the first substrate 110 is the hydrophobic layer 111 exhibiting hydrophobicity, liquid is less likely to remain on the lower surface of the hydrophobic layer 111, and more likely to enter the liquid storage cavity.
The surface of the adjustment layer 121 can be switched between hydrophilicity and hydrophobicity by adjusting an electric field in an environment where the adjustment layer 121 is located.
Specifically, before loading the liquid, a first reference voltage may be supplied to the first electrode layer 113, and a second reference voltage may be supplied to a portion of the second electrode layer 122 opposite to the liquid inlet hole B, so that the predetermined electric field is formed between the first electrode layer 113 and the portion of the second electrode layer 122 opposite to the liquid inlet hole B, and thus the portion of the adjustment layer 121 opposite to the liquid inlet hole B exhibits hydrophilicity.
When liquid needs to be loaded into the liquid storage cavity of the micro-fluidic chip through the liquid inlet hole, a liquid inlet nozzle of a liquid loading device 200 is inserted into the liquid inlet hole, and a droplet D entering the liquid storage cavity is adsorbed by the adjustment layer after contacting the portion of the adjustment layer 121 exhibiting hydrophilicity and does not flow back to the liquid inlet hole, so that the liquid can be reliably loaded into the liquid storage cavity A.
In the present disclosure, the first reference voltage and the second reference voltage are not particularly limited. In an embodiment, the first reference voltage may be a ground voltage, and the second reference voltage may be a positive voltage having a predetermined magnitude. Specifically, the first electrode layer 113 may be electrically coupled to a negative electrode of a power supply, and the portion of the second electrode layer 122 facing the liquid inlet hole B may be electrically coupled to a positive electrode of the power supply.
After the droplet D enters the liquid storage cavity, it may split into sub-droplets, which may result in a decrease in the volume of the liquid that can be detected. In an embodiment, a liquid storage recess C is formed on the surface of the first substrate 110 facing the second substrate 120, and the liquid inlet hole B penetrates through the top wall of the liquid storage recess C. When the liquid is loaded, a certain amount of the liquid is stored in the liquid storage recess, and even if a sub-droplet is split from the droplet D, the liquid in the liquid storage recess C can supplement the remaining main droplet, so that the main droplet in the liquid storage cavity can be ensured to be large enough in volume to meet the detection requirement.
In the present disclosure, the specific shape of the liquid storage recess C is not particularly limited. In order to better guide the liquid into the liquid storage cavity, in an embodiment, the top wall of the liquid storage recess is shaped as a convex polygon, the top wall includes at least one inner angle that is a non-right angle, and one of the inner angles that are not right angles is a liquid inlet angle, and the liquid inlet hole is disposed at the liquid inlet angle.
Correspondingly, the liquid storage recess also includes a plurality of side walls which are arranged at respective sides of the top wall. Two side walls forming the liquid inlet angle are obliquely and crosswise arranged, so that liquid entering the liquid storage recess can be guided, and the liquid is prevented from remaining in the liquid storage recess.
In the present disclosure, the specific shape of the liquid storage recess is not particularly limited. As shown in FIG. 6, the top wall of the liquid storage recess is of a convex pentagon, the inner angles of the top wall further include two right angles, the two right angles are adjacent to each other, and the liquid inlet angle is opposite to the side of the top wall between the two adjacent right angles.
Specifically, five sides of the top wall are respectively a side L1, a side L2, a side L3, a side L4 and a side L5, and the angle between the side L1 and the side L2 is a liquid inlet angle which is opposite to the side L5. The angle between the side L4 and the side L5 is a right angle and the angle between the side L3 and the side L5 is a right angle.
As an optional embodiment, the length of the side L5 may be between 3 mm and 10 mm. In an embodiment, the length of the side L5 may be 5 mm, the distance between the apex of the liquid inlet angle and the side L5 may be between 3 mm and 10 mm. In an embodiment, the distance between the apex of the liquid inlet angle and the side L5 may be 5 mm. In the present disclosure, the depth d of the liquid storage recess (see FIG. 5) is not particularly limited, and may be determined according to the property of the liquid and the amount of liquid required for detection. In an embodiment, the depth d of the liquid storage recess may be between 100 μm and 1000 μm. In an embodiment, the depth of the liquid storage recess may be 500 μm.
In the present disclosure, the liquid storage recess and the liquid inlet hole may be formed by means of micro-machining (e.g., injection molding, laser engraving, sand blasting, etc.).
In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the first substrate 110 further includes a convex plate 114, the convex plate 114 is disposed on a surface of the first substrate 110 away from the second substrate 120, and the liquid inlet hole B penetrates through the convex plate 114 and the remaining portions of the first substrate 110.
As shown in FIG. 2, due to the convex plate 114, the liquid loading nozzle 210 of the liquid loading device 200 cannot be inserted into the liquid storage cavity, which allows a part of the liquid to be contained in the liquid inlet hole (specifically, the height of the liquid in the liquid inlet hole is h). When the sub-droplet is split from the droplet D, the liquid stored in the liquid storage recess and the liquid stored in the liquid inlet hole can supplement the droplet.
Of course, the present disclosure is not limited thereto. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, no convex plate is provided on the first substrate 110 (i.e., the surface of the first substrate 110 away from the second substrate is planar), and as shown in FIG. 4, only a small amount of liquid is contained in the liquid inlet hole.
In the present disclosure, the specific shape of the convex plate 14 is not limited, and for example, the convex plate may be cylindrical, or may be cubic, frustum, or the like.
In order to ensure that the liquid loading device 200 can load liquid into the liquid storage cavity, the portion of the liquid loading device 200 inserted into the liquid inlet hole should be sealed with the liquid inlet hole, for example. The liquid can be discharged from the liquid loading device 200 by applying pressure to the liquid therein by the liquid loading device 200, and the portion of the liquid loading device 200 inserted into the liquid inlet hole should be in a sealing state with the liquid inlet hole, so that the liquid can be ensured to smoothly enter the liquid storage cavity.
In the present disclosure, how to seal the liquid loading device 200 with the liquid inlet hole is not particularly limited, for example, an elastic sealing ring may be disposed on a wall of the liquid inlet hole, so that after the liquid loading device 200 is inserted into the liquid inlet hole, a sealing between an outer surface of the liquid loading device 200 and the elastic sealing ring is formed.
In order to reduce the requirement on the machining accuracy, in an embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the liquid inlet hole B may include a conical hole portion B1 and a cylindrical hole portion B2, which are coaxially arranged, the conical hole portion B1 is located at one end of the cylindrical hole portion B2 away from the second substrate 120, and the hole diameter of the conical hole portion B1 is gradually reduced in the direction from the first substrate 110 to the second substrate 120. In other words, the liquid inlet hole B is a funnel-shaped hole.
In the present disclosure, the specific size of the liquid inlet hole is not particularly limited. For example, the radius r of the cylindrical hole portion B2 in the liquid inlet hole may be between 0.3 mm and 1 mm. In an embodiment, the radius of the cylindrical hole portion B2 may be 0.5 mm, the axial length of the cylindrical hole portion B2 may be between 1 mm and 5 mm. In an embodiment, the axial length of the cylindrical hole portion B2 may be 2 mm. The conical angle of the conical hole portion B1 may be between 10° and 20°. In an embodiment, the conical angle of the conical hole portion B1 is 15°, the axial length of the conical hole portion B1 may be between 1 mm and 5 mm. In an embodiment, the axial length of the conical hole portion B1 may be 2 mm.
Accordingly, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the liquid loading nozzle 210, which is inserted into the liquid inlet hole, of the liquid loading device 200 is configured to be conical or cylindrical, and after the insertion is completed, a self-sealing structure may be formed between the liquid loading nozzle 210 and the liquid inlet hole.
In order to facilitate the provision of the first electrode layer 113 and the hydrophobic layer 111, in an embodiment, the first substrate 110 may further include a first base substrate 112, and the first electrode layer 113 is formed on the first base substrate 112.
Similarly, in order to facilitate the provision of the second electrode layer 122 and the adjustment layer 121, in an embodiment, the second substrate 120 may further include a second base substrate 124, and the second electrode layer 122 is formed on the second base substrate 124.
As described above, the liquid storage recess C is formed on the surface of the first substrate 110 facing the second substrate 120, and thus, an initial recess may be formed on the first base substrate 112, and the liquid storage recess C is formed after the hydrophobic layer 111 and the first electrode layer 113 fall into the initial recess.
In the present disclosure, the depth of the liquid storage recess C is not particularly limited. In an embodiment, the depth of the liquid storage recess is not more than half of the thickness of the first substrate 110.
It should be noted that for some biological tests, it is desirable to observe the change (e.g., color change) of the droplet in the cavity, and therefore the first substrate 110 is, for example, a transparent substrate. Accordingly, the first base substrate 112 may be made of a transparent material, such as glass, transparent resin, or the like, the first electrode layer 113 may be made of a first transparent electrode material, and the hydrophobic layer 111 may be made of a material such as a fluorine-based material (e.g., Teflon).
For convenience of manufacturing, as an optional embodiment, the material of the hydrophobic layer 111 is the same as that of the adjustment layer 121.
In the present disclosure, the specific structure of the second electrode layer 122 is not particularly limited as long as it can receive a voltage and form a closed loop with the first electrode layer. As an optional embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the second electrode layer 122 may include a plurality of second electrode bars (four second electrode bars are shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 3, which are, from left to right, an electrode bar 122 a, an electrode bar 122 b, an electrode bar 122 c and an electrode bar 122 d, respectively), one of the plurality of second electrode bars (i.e., the electrode bar 122 a) is opposite to the liquid inlet hole B, and two adjacent second electrode bars are insulated and spaced apart from each other.
Before the liquid is injected into the liquid storage cavity, the second reference voltage is first supplied to the leftmost second electrode bar 122 a, and the first reference voltage is supplied to the first electrode layer 113 (in other words, the second electrode bar 122 a is electrically coupled to a positive electrode of a power supply, and the first electrode layer 113 is electrically coupled to a negative electrode of the power supply), so that the surface of the portion, which is located above the leftmost second electrode bar 122 a, of the adjustment layer 121 is in a hydrophilic state, by which the droplets D injected by the liquid loading device 200 are adsorbed, thereby reducing the resistance of the droplets entering the liquid storage cavity. After the liquid loading device 200 is removed, a voltage is supplied to the second electrode bar 122 b which is the second one of the second electrode bars counted from left, so that the portion, which is located above the second electrode bar 122 b, of the adjustment layer is converted into hydrophilicity to adsorb droplets, and the droplets are prevented from flowing back to the liquid inlet hole.
If it is desired that the droplet is moved further away from the liquid inlet hole and liquid is further loaded into the liquid storage cavity, in an embodiment, the respective second electrode bars may be alternately energized in a direction away from the liquid inlet hole to cause the droplet in the liquid storage cavity to flow. It should be noted that after energizing the next second electrode bar, the electrical signal on the current second electrode bar should be removed.
In order to avoid that the adjustment layer 121 cannot switch between hydrophilicity and hydrophobicity due to voltage breakdown of the adjustment layer, in an embodiment, an insulating spacer layer 123 is provided between the second electrode layer 122 and the adjustment layer 121. In the present disclosure, a specific material of the insulating spacer layer 123 is not particularly limited as long as the adjustment layer 121 can be spaced apart from the second electrode layer 122 to ensure that the adjustment layer 121 is not broken down by voltage. In an embodiment, the insulating spacer layer 123 may be made of an inorganic oxide (e.g., silicon oxide, silicon nitride, or the like), a resin, or the like.
In order to better fulfill the function of protecting the adjustment layer 121, in an embodiment, the thickness of the insulating spacer layer 123 is greater than the thickness of the adjustment layer.
In the present disclosure, a specific material of the adjustment layer 121 is not particularly limited. In an embodiment, the material of the adjustment layer 121 may be a fluorine-based material (e.g., Teflon), in a further embodiment, the thickness of the adjustment layer 121 may be between 50 nm and 800 nm, and in a further embodiment, the thickness of the adjustment layer 121 may be 500 nm.
In an embodiment, the first substrate is connected to and sealed with the second substrate through a sealant. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the first substrate 110 is connected to and sealed with the second substrate 120 through a sealant 130.
In order to facilitate the control of the droplet entering the liquid storage cavity and flowing in the liquid storage cavity without forming too many dispersed droplets, in an embodiment, in a first direction (the direction from left to right in FIGS. 1 and 3 is the first direction), the distance from the liquid inlet hole to one end of the liquid storage cavity is larger than the distance from the liquid inlet hole to the other end of the liquid storage cavity. In this way, it is only necessary to control the droplet D to flow in one direction.
In order to facilitate the droplet to enter the liquid storage cavity, in an embodiment, a gas outlet hole E penetrating through the first substrate 110 in the thickness direction is disposed in the first substrate 110.
As a second aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a micro-fluidic chip system, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, including a liquid loading device 200 and the micro-fluidic chip provided in the present disclosure. The liquid loading nozzle 210 of the liquid loading device 200 can be detachably inserted into the liquid inlet hole.
As described above, in order to ensure the sealing, the liquid inlet hole may be configured to include a conical hole portion and a cylindrical hole portion which are coaxially arranged, and accordingly, the outer surface of the liquid loading nozzle 210 is a conical surface or a cylindrical surface.
In the present disclosure, the specific structure of the liquid loading device 200 is not particularly limited. In an embodiment, the liquid loading device 200 may be a liquid transferring gun, the liquid loading nozzle 210 is disposed on the gun body 220 and is communicated with the gun body 220, a piston is further disposed in the gun body, the liquid to be transferred can be sucked by pulling the piston, and the liquid can be discharged from the liquid loading nozzle 210 by pushing the piston to apply pressure to the liquid.
As a third aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a control method of a micro-fluidic chip, and as shown in FIG. 8, the control method includes steps S310 and S320.
In step S310, a first reference voltage is provided to the first electrode layer, and a second reference voltage is provided to a portion of the second electrode layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole, so that a portion of the adjustment layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole exhibits hydrophilicity.
In step S320, after the liquid entering the liquid storage cavity through the liquid inlet hole contacts the portion of the adjustment layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole, the second reference voltage is provided to a portion of the second electrode layer adjacent to the portion of the second electrode layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole, so that a portion of the adjustment layer adjacent to the portion of the adjustment layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole exhibits hydrophilicity.
As described above, in step S310, the portion of the adjustment layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole is controlled to exhibit hydrophilicity, which facilitates the droplet smoothly entering the liquid storage cavity. In addition, because the first substrate includes the hydrophobic layer, the droplet entering the liquid storage cavity is not likely to remain on the first substrate, and therefore the droplet can further be ensured to smoothly enter the liquid storage cavity.
In step S320, after the droplet enters the liquid storage cavity, the portion of the adjustment layer adjacent to the portion opposite to the liquid inlet hole is set to be hydrophilic, so that the droplet can be prevented from flowing back to the liquid inlet hole.
In order to further avoid the droplet from flowing back to the liquid inlet hole, in an embodiment, the control method further includes removing the second reference voltage applied to the portion of the second electrode layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole after the liquid entering the liquid storage cavity through the liquid inlet hole contacts the portion of the adjustment layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole.
In the present disclosure, there is no particular limitation on how to load the droplet into the liquid inlet hole. In an embodiment, the liquid may be loaded into the micro-fluidic chip by using a liquid transferring gun.
As described above, the second electrode layer includes a plurality of second electrode bars, and the portion of the second electrode layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole is the second electrode bar 122 a in FIG. 1, and the portion of the second electrode layer adjacent to the portion of the second electrode layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole is the second electrode bar 122 b. In the present disclosure, “a portion opposite to the liquid inlet hole” may refer to that an orthographic projection of the portion on a base substrate (e.g., the first base substrate 112 or the second base substrate 124) at least partially overlaps an orthographic projection of the liquid inlet hole on the base substrate. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, the orthographic projection of the liquid inlet hole B on the second base substrate 124 is within an orthographic projection of the second electrode bar 122 a on the second base substrate 124. In an embodiment, an orthographic projection of a portion of the second electrode layer adjacent to the portion of the second electrode layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole on a base substrate does not overlap the orthographic projection of the liquid inlet hole on the base substrate. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, the orthographic projection of the liquid inlet hole B on the second base substrate 124 does not overlap an orthographic projection of the second electrode bar 122 b on the second base substrate 124. In an embodiment, “the portion of the adjustment layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole” has similar meaning as above, details of which will not be repeated herein. For example, an orthographic projection of the portion of the adjustment layer on the second base substrate 124 substantially coincides with the orthographic projection of the portion of the second electrode layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole on the second base substrate 124.
In order to achieve multiple times of loading liquid into the micro-fluidic chip, in an embodiment, steps S310 and S320 may be performed periodically.
In the present disclosure, there is no particular limitation on how to determine the timing to execute step S320. For example, the step S320 may be performed after receiving a trigger signal from an external input.
In the present disclosure, there is no particular limitation on how to generate the trigger signal. For example, the trigger signal may be input through an input device, and in an embodiment, it is also possible to dispose a sensor in the liquid storage cavity, and when the sensor detects that the droplet is in contact with the second electrode strip below the liquid inlet hole, the trigger signal is generated and sent to the control unit executing the control method.
As a fourth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided an electronic apparatus including: a storage device having an executable program stored thereon; and one or more processors that, when executing the executable program, cause the one or more processors to implement the above-described control method provided in accordance with the present disclosure.
It will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that all or some of the steps of the methods, systems, functional modules/units in the devices disclosed above may be implemented as software, firmware, hardware, or suitable combinations thereof. In a case of being implemented as hardware, the division between functional modules/units mentioned in the above description does not necessarily correspond to the division of physical components; for example, one physical component may have multiple functions, or one function or step may be performed by several physical components in cooperation. Some or all of the physical components may be implemented as software executed by a processor, such as a central processing unit, digital signal processor, or microprocessor, or as hardware, or as an integrated circuit, such as an application specific integrated circuit. Such software may be distributed on computer readable media, which may include computer storage media (or non-transitory media) and communication media (or transitory media). The term computer storage media includes volatile and nonvolatile, removable and non-removable media implemented in any method or technology for storage of information such as computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules or other data, as is well known to those skilled in the art. Computer storage media includes, but is not limited to, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory or other memory technology, CD-ROM, Digital Versatile Disk (DVD) or other optical disk storage, magnetic cassette, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage device, or any other medium which can be used to store the desired information and which can be accessed by a computer. In addition, communication media typically embodies computer readable instructions, data structures, program modules or other data in a modulated data signal such as a carrier wave or other transport mechanism and includes any information delivery media as is well known to those skilled in the art.
It will be understood that the above embodiments are merely exemplary embodiments employed to illustrate the principles of the present disclosure, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure, and these changes and modifications are to be considered within the scope of the present disclosure.

Claims

1-21. (canceled)

22. A micro-fluidic chip, comprising a first substrate and a second substrate opposite to each other, wherein a liquid storage cavity is between the first substrate and the second substrate, a liquid inlet hole penetrating through the first substrate in a thickness direction of the first substrate is in the first substrate, the first substrate comprises a first electrode layer and a hydrophobic layer that are sequentially disposed in the thickness direction of the first substrate, and the first electrode layer is on a surface of the hydrophobic layer away from the second substrate;

wherein the second substrate comprises an adjustment layer and a second electrode layer that are sequentially disposed in a thickness direction of the second substrate, and the second electrode layer is on a surface of the adjustment layer away from the first substrate; and

wherein in a case where the adjustment layer is in an electric field having a predetermined strength, a surface of the adjustment layer facing the first substrate exhibits one of hydrophilicity and hydrophobicity, and in a case where the electric field having the predetermined strength is removed, the surface of the adjustment layer facing the first substrate exhibits another one of hydrophilicity and hydrophobicity.

23. The micro-fluidic chip of claim 22, wherein a liquid storage recess is on a surface of the first substrate facing the second substrate, and the liquid inlet hole penetrates through a top wall of the liquid storage recess.

24. The micro-fluidic chip of claim 23, wherein a shape of the top wall of the liquid storage recess is of a convex polygon, the top wall comprises at least one inner angle that is a non-right angle, and one of inner angles of the top wall that are non-right angles is a liquid inlet angle, the liquid inlet hole is at the liquid inlet angle, a plurality of side walls of the liquid storage recess are at respective sides of the top wall, and the plurality side walls are perpendicular to the top wall.

25. The micro-fluidic chip of claim 24, wherein the top wall of the liquid storage recess is of a convex pentagon, the top wall comprises two inner angles that are right angles and adjacent to each other, and the liquid inlet angle is opposite to a side of the top wall between the two right angles.

26. The micro-fluidic chip of claim 22, wherein the first substrate further comprises a convex plate on a surface of the first substrate away from the second substrate, and the liquid inlet hole penetrates through a portion of the first substrate where the convex plate is disposed.

27. The micro-fluidic chip of claim 22, wherein the liquid inlet hole comprises a conical hole portion and a cylindrical hole portion that are coaxially arranged, the conical hole portion is at one end of the cylindrical hole portion away from the second substrate, and a hole diameter of the conical hole portion is gradually reduced in a direction from the first substrate to the second substrate.

28. The micro-fluidic chip of claim 22, wherein the first substrate further comprises a first base substrate, and the first electrode layer is on the first base substrate.

29. The micro-fluidic chip of claim 22, wherein a material of the hydrophobic layer is the same as a material of adjustment layer.

30. The micro-fluidic chip of claim 22, wherein the second electrode layer comprises a plurality of second electrode bars, at least one of the plurality of second electrode bars is opposite to the liquid inlet hole, and any two adjacent second electrode bars of the plurality of second electrode bars are insulated and spaced apart from each other.

31. The micro-fluidic chip of claim 30, wherein an insulating spacer layer is between the second electrode layer and the adjustment layer.

32. The micro-fluidic chip of claim 31, wherein a thickness of the insulating spacer layer is larger than a thickness of the adjustment layer.

33. The micro-fluidic chip of claim 22, wherein the adjustment layer is made of a fluorine-based material.

34. The micro-fluidic chip of claim 22, wherein a thickness of the adjustment layer is between 50 nm and 800 nm.

35. The micro-fluidic chip of claim 22, wherein the first substrate is connected to and sealed with the second substrate through a sealant.

36. The micro-fluidic chip of claim 22, wherein in a first direction perpendicular to the thickness direction of the first substrate, a distance from the liquid inlet hole to one end of the liquid storage cavity is larger than a distance from the liquid inlet hole to another end of the liquid storage cavity.

37. The micro-fluidic chip of claim 22, wherein a gas outlet hole penetrating through the first substrate in the thickness direction of the first substrate is in the first substrate.

38. A micro-fluidic system, comprising a liquid loading device and the micro-fluidic chip of claim 22, wherein a liquid loading nozzle of the liquid loading device is capable of being inserted into the liquid inlet hole.

39. A control method of a micro-fluidic chip, the micro-fluidic chip comprising a first substrate and a second substrate opposite to each other, wherein a liquid storage cavity is between the first substrate and the second substrate, a liquid inlet hole penetrating through the first substrate in a thickness direction of the first substrate is in the first substrate, the first substrate comprises a first electrode layer and a hydrophobic layer that are sequentially disposed in the thickness direction of the first substrate, and the first electrode layer is on a surface of the hydrophobic layer away from the second substrate; wherein the second substrate comprises an adjustment layer and a second electrode layer that are sequentially disposed in a thickness direction of the second substrate, and the second electrode layer is on a surface of the adjustment layer away from the first substrate; and wherein in a case where the adjustment layer is in an electric field having a predetermined strength, a surface of the adjustment layer facing the first substrate exhibits one of hydrophilicity and hydrophobicity, and in a case where the electric field having the predetermined strength is removed, the surface of the adjustment layer facing the first substrate exhibits another one of hydrophilicity and hydrophobicity,

wherein the method comprises:

providing a first reference voltage to the first electrode layer, and providing a second reference voltage to a portion of the second electrode layer, so that a portion of the adjustment layer exhibits hydrophilicity, wherein the portion of the second electrode layer is opposite to the liquid inlet hole, and the portion of the adjustment layer is opposite to the liquid inlet hole; and

after liquid entering the liquid storage cavity through the liquid inlet hole is in contact with the portion of the adjustment layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole, providing the second reference voltage to a portion of the second electrode layer adjacent to the portion of the second electrode layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole, so that a portion of the adjustment layer adjacent to the portion of the adjustment layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole exhibits hydrophilicity.

40. The control method of claim 39, further comprising: removing the second reference voltage applied to the portion of the second electrode layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole, after the liquid entering the liquid storage cavity through the liquid inlet hole is in contact with the portion of the adjustment layer opposite to the liquid inlet hole.

41. An electronic apparatus, comprising:

a storage device having an executable program stored thereon; and

one or more processors that, when executing the executable program, cause the one or more processors to implement the control method of claim 39.