International Business Machines Corporation

Marcel Mayor

Emanuel Loertscher

Gabriel Fernando Puebla Hellman

Ute Drechsler

Emanuel Marc Löertscher

Diego Monserrat Lopez

Gabriel Fernando Puebla Hellmann

A device includes a first layer of an electrically insulating material and a second layer of a non-electrically insulating material (e.g., semiconductor or electrically conductive) extending on the first layer. The second layer is structured so as to define opposite, lateral walls of a microchannel, a bottom wall of which is defined by an exposed surface of the first layer. The second layer is further structured to form one or more electrical insulation barriers; each barrier includes a line of through holes, each surrounded by an oxidized region of the material of the second layer. The through holes alternate with oxidized portions of the oxidized region along the line. Each barrier extends, as a whole, laterally across the second layer up to one of the lateral walls and delimits two sections of the second layer on each side of the barrier and on a same side of the microchannel.

Microfluidic devices with electrodes formed as physically separated sections of microchannel side walls

A structure including a first layer of one or more molecular components having a first top anchor group, a first functional moiety and a first bottom anchor group. The first functional moiety connects the first top anchor group to the first bottom anchor group. The structure further includes a first conductive film of one or more nanoparticles disposed on the first layer of one or more molecular components. Each of at least a portion of the one or more nanoparticles bond with the first top anchor group of the one or more molecular components. Each of at least a portion of the one or more nanoparticles cross-link with at least one other of the nanoparticles. The first conductive film forms a first contact for the first layer of one or more molecular components.

Contacting molecular components

A method for forming a contact to a layer of one or more molecular components that comprises depositing one or more nanoparticles on the layer of one or more molecular components. Each of at least a portion of the one or more nanoparticles bond with each of at least a portion of the one or more molecular components. When there is more than one nanoparticle, each of at least a portion of the one and more nanoparticles cross-link with at least one other of the one or more nanoparticles. The bonded and cross-linked nanoparticles form both a mechanical and electrical contact for the layer of molecular components. The contact may further act as protection and sealing layers to preserve the chemical integrity at ambient operation conditions and/or enable mass and ionic exchange.

A method for manufacturing a gap device includes forming a template structure on a substrate, depositing an active material layer on the substrate and on the template structure, wherein the active material layer covers at least top and side surfaces of the template structure, planarizing the active material layer, and selectively removing the template structure with respect to the active material layer and the substrate.

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Basel, Switzerland

Marcel Mayor