Metallic glass thin film integrated with flexible membrane for electromagnetic micropump application

Abstract

In this work, metallic glass (MG) thin film integrated with flexible membrane for use in an electromagnetic micropump was proposed and developed. Fe-based MG thin film deposited on a flexible membrane was employed as the actuation membrane. The electromagnetic force generated between the electromagnetic coil and the magnetized thin film was used to excite the actuation membrane. The actuation membrane was integrated with a microchannel for the micropump application. The fluid in the microchannel was driven by the pressure change resulting from the membrane deflection. Membrane deflection of 45 μm was achieved when a current of 0.12 A was applied to the electromagnetic coil. In addition, a maximum flow rate of 0.17 μl min-1 was achieved and driven by the electromagnetic micropump. The Fe-based MG integrated with the flexible membrane actuated by electromagnetic force could be applied to the actuation membrane for the electromagnetic micropump.