Microfluidic-based flexible reflective multicolor display

Abstract

This paper describes a microfluidic-based flexible reflective display constructed using dyed water droplets and air gaps as pixel elements. Our display is composed of a flexible polydimethylsiloxane sheet with a connected pixel-patterned microchannel. Several types of dyed water droplets and air gaps are sequentially introduced to the microchannel through a suction process to display a multicolor image. The displayed image is stable and can be retained without an energy supply. To ensure that images are displayed correctly, the geometric parameters of the dot pixel design and minimum differential pressure necessary to drive the water droplets are evaluated. As a demonstration, we successfully display three-color dot-matrix reflective images and bitmap characters in the microchannel. Our proposed method can be applied to energy-less and color-changeable displays for use in future daily-life accessories, such as bags, shoes, and clothes, and can change the surface color and pattern of these accessories.