µ-mixer & µDrop for SAXS - Two new instruments for microfluidic sample processing
Richard Haider
15:30 - 16:00 Tuesday 04 February 2020 P2

Two new instruments have been developed at and for the use at the Austrian SAXS beamline at the Elettra-Sincrotrone in Trieste, Italy. This beamline is an outpost of the TU Graz for synchrotron based Small Angle X-Ray Scattering (SAXS), which is a widely used technique for investigating (macro-)molecular structures.

The first instrument is a 3D-sheathing, hydrodynamically focusing micromixer. Micromixers are useful as they allow for time-resolved investigations of fast reaction processes. The addition of 3D-sheathing serves to prevent reaction materials from sticking to the channel walls, which can invalidate measurements and even break the instrument.

The second instrument is an automatic sample changer. Especially at synchrotrons, where measurement times are often very short, changing samples manually can take up a substantial amount of time. While sometimes just a nuisance, if the time for experimentation is limited or expensive, as is the case at synchrotrons, automating the handling and measuring of samples becomes very valuable. This sample changer uses a novel, droplet-based sample-holder, which allows it to measure sample volumes down to 6 µl, taking less than 35 seconds for cleaning and placing the next sample. Up to 480 samples can be measured in one run, with a reliability of about 99.8%.

The basic principles behind the operation of the instruments will be layed out, their development and some encountered challenges discussed briefly and the possibilities and the performance of the final instruments presented.