Researchers at the University of South Florida have developed a technology that relates to the practice of electrowetting; which, in general, refers to the change in apparent surface energy with an applied electric field. Most commonly, electrowetting is used to enable the manipulation of miniature droplets of fluid. A difficulty within this practice lies in the large number of electrodes required to manipulate the droplet. The actuation magnitude is commonly known to be proportional to the voltage squared. Therefore, the direction of actuation is typically independent of the voltage polarity.
University of South Florida researchers have discovered a way in which the actuation direction can be made dependent on the polarity of the applied voltage. This is accomplished by introducing a diode into the system. The force becomes sensitive to the voltage polarity. Using this technique, smooth continuous droplet motion has been demonstrated using a DC voltage input.
This technology may be utilized in microfluidic and electrofluidic systems.
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