LMI has, over the past decade, delivered a dozen laser marking machines for use in medical microfluidics. The laser machines are used to create microscopic channels in plastic for analyzing fluids such as blood and urine.
The most recent company to invest in laser technology for microfluidics is Bifrost Biosystems AB. They provide technology for screening in a systems biology context. This technology enhances researchers’ ability to develop new pharmaceuticals.
Microfluidics according to Wikipedia:
Microfluidics is the study of how fluids, physically confined to the micrometer scale in at least one dimension, behave, are measured, and are manipulated. It is a multidisciplinary research field that incorporates elements from engineering, physics, chemistry, biochemistry, microtechnology, nanotechnology, and biotechnology, with practical applications in designing systems that handle very small fluid volumes to achieve multiplexing, automation, and high-throughput screening.
Microfluidics emerged in the early 1980s, initially with applications in inkjet printheads for printers and later in lab-on-a-chip technologies, micropropulsion, and microthermal technologies. Microfluidics can also be applied in medical diagnostics.
