A
lab-on-a-chip (LOC) is a device that integrates one or several laboratory
functions on a single chip of only millimeters
to a few square centimeters in size. Locs deal with
the handling of extremely small fluid volumes down to less than pico liters. Lab-on-a-chip devices are a subset
of MEMS devices and often indicated by "Micro Total Analysis Systems" (�tas) as
well. Microfluidics is a broader term that describes
also mechanical
flow control devices like pumps and valves or sensors like flowmeters and viscometers. However, strictly regarded
"Lab-on-a-Chip" indicates generally the scaling of single or
multiple lab processes down to chip-format, whereas "�tas" is dedicated to the integration of the total sequence of lab processes to perform chemical
analysis. The term "Lab-on-a-Chip" was introduced later on when it
turned out that �tas technologies were more widely
applicable than only for analysis purposes.
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