Fabrication of a cyclic olefin copolymer planar waveguide embedded in a multi-channel poly(methyl methacrylate) fluidic chip for evanescence excitation

The fabrication and characterization of a novel cyclic olefin copolymer (COC) waveguide embedded in a poly(methyl methacrylate), PMMA, fluidic chip configured in a multi-channel format with an integrated monolithic prism for evanescent fluorescence excitation are reported. The fabrication approach allowed the embedded waveguide to be situated orthogonal to a series of fluidic channels within the PMMA wafer to sample fluorescent solutions in these channels using the evanescence properties of the waveguide. Construction of the device was achieved using several fabrication techniques including high precision micromilling, hot embossing and stenciling of a polymer melt to form the waveguide and coupling prism. A waveguide channel was fabricated in the fluidic chip's cover plate, also made from PMMA, and was loaded with a COC solution using a pre-cast poly(dimethylsiloxane), PDMS, stencil containing a prism-shaped recess. The PMMA substrate contained multiple channels (100 µm wide × 30 µm deep with a pitch of 100 µm) that were situated orthogonal to the waveguide to allow penetration of the evanescent field into the sampling solution. The optical properties of the waveguide in terms of its transmission properties and penetration depth of the evanescent field in the adjacent solution were evaluated. Finally, the device was used for laser-induced fluorescence evanescent excitation of a dye solution hydrodynamically flowing through multiple microfluidic channels in the chip and processed using a microscope equipped with a charge-coupled device (CCD) for parallel readout. The device and optical system were able to image 11 channels simultaneously with a limit-of-detection of 7.1 × 10−20 mol at a signal-to-noise ratio of 2. The waveguide was simple to manufacture and could be scaled to illuminate much higher channel numbers making it appropriate for high-throughput measurements using evanescent excitation.