Welcome to Microfluidics & Nanomechatronics Laboratory (µFNM Lab) that belongs to School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Nuclear Engineering (Department of Mechanical Engineering, MAE, me.unist.ac.kr) at Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST, www.unist.ac.kr).

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The long term research goal is to create novel micro-/nanofluidic technologies that develop a broad spectrum of interdisciplinary research fields. Currently, µFNM Lab focuses on four research fields:

• MicroFluidics (Fluid Mechanics at Micro/Nano-scale)

• NanoMechatronics (Automation of Micro/Nano-scale Systems and Devices)

• Multi-physics simulation (Numerical Simulation of Fluids, Ions, Colloids, etc)

• Printing in 2D and 3D manners (Micro/Nanofabrication)

• Micro-/Nanofluidics: Small Chip but Big World!

• - Microfluidics and Nanofluidics (MNF) deal with fluid mechanics and mass transport phenomena at micro-/nanoscale. Unlike classical fluid mechanics and heat and mass transfer, the MNF are a multi-disciplinary field including engineering, physics, chemistry, biochemistry, and biotechnology and show a variety of novel applications.​​​

 

- M. Kim and T. Kim*, Diffusion-based and long-range concentration gradients of multi-chemicals for bacterial chemotaxis assays, Anal. Chem., 82(22), pp. 9401-9409, 2010. PDF (top left)

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- Minseok Kim†, Ji Won Lim†, Hyun Ju Kim, Sung Kuk Lee, Sang Jun Lee*, and Taesung Kim*, Chemostat-like Microfluidic Platform for Highly Sensitive Detection of Heavy Metal Ions Using Microbial, Biosensors and Bioelectronics, 2015, 65(15), 257-264. PDF (top right)

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- Seongyong Park, Dasol Kim, Robert J. Mitchell, and Taesung Kim*, A Microfluidic Concentrator Array for Quantitative Predaton Assays of Predatory Microbes, Lab-on-a-chip, 2011. PDF

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• Mixed-scale Patterning (micro-/nanofabrication) : Cracking is Breaking!

• - Nano-scale patterns can be simultaneously produced with micro-scale patterns by using only the standard photolithography, showing a wide variety of micro-/nanofluidic applications. It is called "Crack-photolithography".

 

- Minseok Kim, Dogyeong Ha, and Taesung Kim*, Cracking-assisted photolithography for mixed-scale patterning and nanofluidic applications, Nature Communications, 6, Article No. 6247, 2015. PDF

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• Multi-physics Simulation : Complex but Visualizable!

• COMSOL Multiphysics Simulation visualizes the pre-concentration of target biomolecules at the anodic side (left) of the nanoporous, perm-selective memebrane patterned on the microchannel surface. This simulation deals with Navier-stokes's equation, Poisson's equation, and Nerst-Planct equation at the same time. It is called electrokinetics, showing remarkable potential for bio-sensor applications. The following simulation results show ion concentration polarization phenomena and nonlinear electroosmotic flow (the 2nd kind EOF flow).

 

[The concentration and polarization of ions, proteins, and DNAs]​

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[Vortex Flows at the microscale]

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[Particle Separation including CTC sorting]

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- Minseok Kim, Mingjie Jia and Taesung Kim*, Ion Concentration Polarization in A Single and Open Microchannel Induced by A Surface-patterned Perm-selective Film, Analyst, 2013, 138(5), 1370-1378. PDF

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- Mingjie Jia and Taesung Kim*, Multiphysics Simulation of Ion Concentration Polarization Induced By Nanoporous Membranes in Dual Channel Devices, Anal. Chem., 2014, 86(15), 7360−7367. PDF (IF = 5.825)

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- Mingjie Jia and Taesung Kim*, Multi-physics Simulation of Ion Concentration Polarization Induced by A Surface-patterned Nanoporous Membrane in Single Channel Devices, Anal. Chem., 2014, 86(20), 10365–10372. PDF (IF = 5.825)

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• Mechatronics (automation of micro-/nanofluidic devices) : Let's have the robot experiment!

• Micro-/nanofluidic devices can be automatically operated with the aid of LabVIEW and electric circuits (controller).​

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- Jae Myung Lee, Jun Hyeong Lee, Taesung Kim* and Sung Kuk Lee*, Light-switchable gene expression system in Escherichia coli, PLOS One, 2013, 8(1): e52382. PDF

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- Younkwang Nam, Minseok Kim and Taesung Kim*, Pneumatically Controlled Multi-level Microchannel for Separation and Extraction of Microparticles, Sensors and Actuators: B-Chemicals, 2014, 190, 86-92. PDF (IF = 3.840)

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• Printing based micro-/nanofabrication : Make Things Show up!

• Inkjet-printing technology is employed to produce live cell patterns for high-throughput screening of small mutant libraries and nano-gratings for anti-counterfeit applications.

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[Materials Printer]

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[Printing of Live Bacterial Cells: Patterning and Printing of live cells for investigating cellular interaction/communication]

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- Woon Sun Choi, Dokyeong Ha, Seongyong Park, and Taesung Kim*, Synthetic Multi-cellular Cell-to-Cell Communication in Inkjet Printed Bacterial Cell Systems, Biomaterials, 2011, 32 2500-2507. (IF=7.365) PDF

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- Woon Sun Choi, Minseok Kim, Seongyong Park, Sung Kuk Lee and Taesung Kim*, Patterning and Transferring Hydrogel-Encapsulated Bacterial Cells for Quantitative Analysis of Synthetically Engineered Genetic Circuits, Biomaterials, 2012, 33(2), 624-633. PDF

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Kyunghun Lee, Jongwan Lee, Dogyeong Ha, Minseok Kim, and Taesung Kim
Low-Electric-Potential-Assisted Diffusiophoresis for Continuous Separation of Nanoparticles on a Chip
Lab on a Chip, 2020, Vol. 20, No. 0, pp. 2735~ 2747

Qitao Zhou†, Jun Gyu Park† and Taesung Kim
Heterogeneous Semiconductor Nanowire Array for Sensitive Broadband Photodetector by Crack Photolithography-based Micro-/Nanofluidic Platforms
RSC advances, 2020, Vol. 10, No. 0, pp. 23712~ 23719

Juyeol Bae, Janghyun Ju, Dahyun Kim, and Taesung Kim
Double-Sided Microwells with a Stepped Through-Hole Membrane for High-Throughput Microbial Assays
Anal. Chem, 2020, Vol. 92, No. 14, pp. 9501~ 9510