This award supports an eighteen month Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Short-Term Postdoctoral Fellowship for Dr. Jacob Loverich. He will be collaborating with Professor Hidetoshi Kotera at Kyoto University in Japan. They will be undertaking research on a bi-directional traveling-wave micropump driven by piezoelectric actuators. Understanding the fundamental building blocks of life, and the nano-scale proteins that sustain it, is becoming increasingly important in the emerging field of bionanotechnology. Micro-fluidic systems that can perform nano-scale protein analyses are primary tools for advancing these bio-nanotechnology research efforts. One such micro-fluidic system, the so-called Micro Total Analysis System (uTAS), is already beginning to serve as a driving force for discovery in nano-scale cell biology, neurobiology, pharmacology, and tissue engineering. Therefore, developing micro-fluidic systems in general (and, more specifically, improving such systems' central driving element, the micropump) is generating significant research interest. The project will involve the research and development of a new uTAS micropump. The new micropump will use a novel traveling-wave pumping technique that is potentially more simple, versatile, and compact than existing micropump designs. The primary objectives of this project are to miniaturize the traveling-wave micropump concept to a scale that can handle single-cell manipulations, simplify the design so that the production cost of the device will not limit its applicability, and improve the flow velocity of the pump over current micropump designs. The scope of the research project will encompass fabrication, experimental evaluation, and model simulation of the new micropump design.
This project will offer a good opportunity to join efforts between two countries that are both leaders in the nanotechnology area. Through the exchange of ideas and technology, this project will broaden our base of basic knowledge and promote international understanding and cooperation. Results of the research will be disseminated at scientific meetings and in scientific journals.
