MEMS Device with Piezoelectric Actuators for Driving Mechanical Vortexes in Aqueous Solution Drop

This work presents a MEMS device with Aluminum Nitride (AlN) piezoelectric actuators on a silicon suspended plate developed for driving mechanical vortexes in aqueous solution, and hence obtain centrifugation of fluids. Innovatively, the MEMS device has the capability to force ClockWise (CW) or CounterClockWise (CCW) rotations of a fluid drop placed in contact with the MEMS suspended plate. Experimental results show that CW and CCW rotations have been obtained using a 2-mm-diameter drop of water.This capability advantageously could allow the use of the proposed MEMS device for applications where drop centrifugation with different rotation directions can change the chemical or biological properties of the fluids.