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Optofluidics: An Emerging Technology for Reconfigurable Architectures

Anagha A, Anjitha V, Gnana Sheela K

Optofluidics is the study of a class of optical system that involves atleast one fluidic component in the functional optical path. The incorporation of fluids into optical system offers a simple and cost effective method of fabricating high quality optical structures and enables real time tunability of optical properties that are difficult to reconfigure in conventional solid state optical systems. The novelties of the integrated optofluidics are two-fold. First, fluids can be used to carry substances for analysis in highly sensitive optical micro-devices. Second, fluids can also be exploited to control light, making them tunable, reconfigurable and adaptive. It is a new breakthrough research area that provides new solutions and opportunities for a wide range of traditional photonic devices, allowing tuning and reconfiguration at the micrometer scale by using microfluidic manipulation. This new innovation allows scientists and researchers to tackle many classical problems with new tools and new research ideas. Optofluidic research is having breakthrough innovations in optical and photonic devices, including the high potential applications of optofluidics in biophysical, biochemistry and biomedical studies.