In microfluidic systems, fluid flow is always laminar. This is both a benefit and a burden — a benefit because the flow field is stationary, and a burden because species mixing occurs primarily by diffusion, which can be time-consuming. A simple way to mix chemical species in a microfluidic chip is to use a serpentine channel structure. Using the COMSOL Multiphysics® software, the periodicity of such a structure can be exploited to determine the required channel length that will ensure that the chemical species leaves the system well mixed. Read more
