Positioning of small particles by an ultrasound field excited by surface waves

A method for the controlled positioning of small particles in one or two dimensions by an ultrasound field excited by a surface wave is presented. Particles of a diameter between 10 and 100 microm placed on a surface can be concentrated at certain locations and moved over the surface. In other approaches it is possible to let the particle levitate freely in the fluid. However for the use of ultrasonic positioning in for example microassembling it is necessary to move particles over a surface as well as to let them levitate over the surface. Physical principle: A two- or three-dimensional ultrasound field is excited in a fluid filled gap between a rigid surface at the bottom and a vibrating surface of a solid at the top. The height of the gap varies between 0.1 and 2 mm. A one-dimensional sinusoidal vibration of the upper surface excites a two-dimensional ultrasound field in the fluid. Particles that are arbitrarily distributed on the lower surface will be concentrated in lines by the ultrasound field. First the calculation of the field of forces on particles in the fluid layer is presented. Then the dispersion relation of a vibrating plate which is in contact with a fluid on one side is derived. The technical setup will be introduced. Finally the experiments are shown and compared to the theoretical results.     

Planarization process of single crystalline silicon asperity under abrasive rolling effect studied by molecular dynamics simulation

In the chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) process, the complex behaviors of abrasive particles play important roles in the planarization of wafer surface. Particles embedded in the pad remove materials by ploughing, while particles immersed in the slurry by rolling across the wafer surface. In this paper, processes of the particle rolling across a silicon surface with an asperity under various down forces and external driving forces were studied using molecular dynamics (MD) simulation method. The simulations clarified the asperity shape evolution during the rolling process and analyzed the energy changes of the simulation system and the interaction forces acted on the silica particle. It was shown that both the down force and the driving force had important influences on the amount of the material removed. With relatively small down forces and driving forces applied on the particle, the material removal occurred mainly in the front end of the asperity; when the down forces and driving forces were large enough, e.g., 100?nN, the material removal could take place at the whole top part of the asperity. The analysis of energy changes and interaction forces provided favorable explanations to the simulation results.     

Finite element modeling of a microparticle manipulator

The contactless movement of microparticles and cells to known locations within a fluid volume is of interest in the fields of microtechnology and life sciences. A device which can position such inhomogeneities suspended in a fluid at multiple locations is described and modeled. The device consists of a thin fluid layer contained in a channel etched into a silicon wafer. Waves are excited by a macro-piezoelectric plate with electrodes on the top and bottom surfaces and, as a result, waves propagate into the adjacent fluid. The result is a pressure field throughout the fluidic volume. When an inhomogeneity in a fluid is exposed to an ultrasonic field the acoustic radiation force results; this is found by integrating the pressure over the surface of the particle, retaining second order terms, and taking the time average. Thus, due to the presence of a pressure field in the fluid in which the particles are suspended, a force field is created. The particles are then collected at the locations of the force potential minima. In the device described here, the force field is used to position particles into lines. The locations of the particles are predicted by using a finite element model of the system. The experimental and modeling results, presented here, are in good agreement.     

Internal deformation of a uniform elastic solid by acoustic radiation force

Tissue elasticity estimation is a growing area of ultrasound research. One proposed approach would apply acoustic radiation force to displace tissue and use ultrasonic motion tracking techniques to measure the resultant displacement. Such a technique might allow noninvasive imaging of tissue elastic properties. The potential of this method will be limited by the magnitude of displacements which can be generated at reasonable acoustic intensity levels. This paper presents methods for estimating the internal displacements induced in an elastic solid by acoustic radiation force. These methods predict displacements on the order of 400 microns in the human vitreous body, 0.008 micron in human breast, and 0.020 micron in human liver at an acoustic intensity of 1.0 W/cm2 (in water) and an operating frequency of 10 MHz. While the displacement generated in the vitreous should be readily detectable using ultrasonic methods, the displacements generated in the breast and liver will be much more difficult to detect. Methods are also developed for predicting the time dependent temperature increases associated with attenuated acoustic fields in the absence of perfusion. These results indicate promise for radiation force imaging in the vitreous, but potential difficulties in applying these techniques in other parts of the body.     

Estimation of tissue's elasticity with surface wave speed

The mechanical response of tissues to external forces has gained considerable interest in medical diagnosis. One approach to imaging tissue elastic properties is to apply an external force on the surface of the body. Another approach is to generate a localized force inside the tissue with the radiation force of ultrasound. In this paper, a new method is developed to estimate tissue's elasticity based on surface wave speed measurement. The theory of surface wave speed is developed for estimating tissue's elasticity. Experiments are carried out on a tissue-mimicking ultrasound phantom. An amplitude modulated ultrasound signal of a few hundred hertz is used to generate a localized force in the phantom. The surface wave fields are measured with a laser vibrometer. It shows that the surface wave speed can be used for inversely estimating tissue's elastic properties based on tissue's surface measurement.     

Numerical simulation of particle motion in an ultrasound field using the lattice Boltzmann model

In this paper we investigate the motion of small particles suspended in a fluid through which an ultrasound field is propagating. The application of the lattice Boltzmann model to this problem is considered using a two dimensional model. Particles in an ultrasound field are observed to move with a mean particle motion. Further, the time-averaged force on a fixed cylinder is computed and found to be in good agreement with a theoretical expression for the radiation force. Simulations are performed with a single particle, although the approach can equally be applied for a larger number of particles.     

Numerical simulation of particle motion in an ultrasound field using the lattice Boltzmann model

In this paper we investigate the motion of small particles suspended in a fluid through which an ultrasound field is propagating. The application of the lattice Boltzmann model to this problem is considered using a two dimensional model. Particles in an ultrasound field are observed to move with a mean particle motion. Further, the time-averaged force on a fixed cylinder is computed and found to be in good agreement with a theoretical expression for the radiation force. Simulations are performed with a single particle, although the approach can equally be applied for a larger number of particles.     

Charge and force acting on a spherical body near a planar electrode in a polarizable conducting medium

A method for calculating electric fields in conducting polarizable media with interface is suggested. An integral equation for the density of surface charge induced at the interface is derived. The value of this density is used to find the field in the volume. The total charge induced at the interface and the force acting on a spherical body touching a planar electrode are calculated. It is found that the total charge and the force are alternating functions of the relative conductivity of the media; that is, both repulsion from and attraction to the electrode are possible depending on the conductivity. The near-electrode force acting on solid particles, bubbles, and drops in an immiscible liquid is studied experimentally.     

电磁流体表面推进机理与效果分析

电磁流体表面推进是在推进单元周围的导电流体中(海水、等离子体等)激励出电磁体积力,并利用电磁体积力的反作用力达到推进的目的. 基于电磁场和流体力学的基本控制方程,采用有限体积法对电磁流体表面推进的效果进行了数值模拟研究,分析了在不同姿态(攻角)和不同电磁体积力的作用下,航行器周围流场结构的变化规律和推力的变化特点.研究结果表明:沿航行器表面分布的电磁体积力可以有效地改变流体边界层的结构,并能向流体边界层传输动量与能量,从而使航行器获得所需的推力.流体对航行器的黏性阻力和压差阻力的影响随作用参数的增大而减弱 关键词： 表面推进 航行器 推进单元 电磁体积力     

Theory of electromagnetic generation of acoustic waves in metals

The theory of the anomalous skin effect in metals is used in order to study the direct generation of ultrasound by electromagnetic radiation incident on a metal surface, in the absence and in the presence of a magnetic field. The non-monotonic behaviour of the acoustic flux observed experimentally, as a function of the magnetic field can be explained within the framework of the free-electron model assuming that the electrons are scattered diffusely from the metal surface. The reason for this behaviour is traced to the variation of the relative phases of the collision drag force on the bulk ions and that on the surface with increasing magnetic field. The relations between existing theories of direct generation of ultrasound have been investigated within both the free-electron approximation and the effective-mass theory. We conclude that, besides the collision drag force, the Lorentz force and the Bragg reaction force, an additional ‘deformation’ force acts upon the positive ions. We find that the assumption of electron diffuse surface scattering is the only mechanism that can account for the observations on the variety of materials investigated. We also analyse, within a simple effective-mass approximation, possible band structure effects on acoustic wave propagation in metals and on the helicon-phonon interaction.     

Detection of Deposited Particles from the Backside of a Glass Plate

Microcontamination of product surfaces by deposited particles is an important problem in clean technologies. A most sensitive product to contamination by particles is a wafer during chip production. Therefore, methods for monitoring particle deposition on wafer surfaces have been developed in the last decade. A wafer with an unstructured and reflecting surface is inserted into the process equipment. After some time, depending on the process, this wafer is removed from the process equipment and is analysed with respect to the number of deposited particles using a wafer scanner. However, in situ particle detection in a process chamber is not possible with this technique. This would be possible if, instead of a monitor wafer, a transparent glass plate is mounted, e.g. in the housing of the process equipment. Then the illuminating and scattered light detection equipment can be mounted outside the process equipment. Since both the illuminating laser beam and the scattered light have to be transmitted through the glass plate, losses will occur, which will reduce the lower limit of detection with respect to particle size. In this article we estimate the detection possibilities theoretically and experimentally. A simple model based on Mie and vector scattering theory has been developed to describe the light-scattering behavior of a single spherical particle on a glass plate with random surface irregularities. The scattered light of individual particles of four particle sizes (1.03, 1.6, 2.92 and 4.23 μm) on the same glass surface and from the uncontaminated area of the glass plate was measured for unpolarized and normally incident light. The values of the scattered light from this model were compared with the experimental results. The comparison shows a reasonable agreement of the angular distribution of the scattered light. The developed model is used to predict the lower limit of detection for particles on a transparent surface. The theoretical estimations show that it should be possible to detect particles of a diameter down to 0.2 μm with the described measurement technique.     

Ultraviolet laser removal of small metallic particles from silicon wafers

Laser removal of small 1 μm sized copper, gold and tungsten particles from silicon wafer surfaces was carried out using ultraviolet radiation at 266 nm generated by Nd:YAG harmonic generation. Successful removal of both copper and gold particles from the surface was achieved whereas tungsten particles proved to be difficult to remove. The cleaning efficiency was increased with an increase of laser fluence. The optimum processing window for safe cleaning of the surface without any substrate damage was determined by measuring the damage threshold laser fluence on the silicon substrate and the required fluence for complete removal of the particles. The different cleaning efficiencies with particle type are discussed by considering the adhesion force of the particle on the surface and the laser-induced cleaning force for the three different particles.     

Catalysis of dispersed silver particles on directional etching of silicon

Silver particles are dispersed on silicon by magnetron sputtering and post-annealing to investigate the catalytic effects of individual silver particles on wet etching of silicon surface. According to scanning electron microscopy, dispersed deep holes are present and the major etching direction is vertical to the surface of a Si(1 0 0) wafer or inclined to that on a Si(1 1 1) wafer. Our experiments indicate that the effect of the anisotropy of Si on directional etching is fundamental and the wafer resistivity and experimental process have important influence on the etching results. In addition, aggregation of silver particles and random horizontal etching on the surface of the wafer are caused by the local imbalance between the oxidant and HF. Our results enable better understanding of the catalytic effects of metal particles on silicon and are helpful to the preparation new silicon nanostructures.     

一种改进的光滑粒子流体动力学前处理方法

为了便于对任意边界形状的计算域快速地布置均匀粒子,提出了一种改进的光滑粒子流体动力学前处理方法.该方法是在2012年Colagrossi等提出的算法基础上进行改进后得到的.Colagrossi等提出的算法能够计算一些简单外形分布比较均匀的粒子.然而当光滑长度与初始粒子间距的比值较大时该方法在计算过程中会出现较强的数值震荡问题,收敛速度慢;而且在计算过程中可能会遭遇流体粒子穿透固体壁面的问题.本文通过引入未知因素修正的平滑粒子动力学模型来提高计算稳定性,并通过对边界附近的流体粒子施加边界力来避免流体粒子穿透固体壁面.算例验证结果表明,利用改进后的光滑粒子流体动力学前处理方法能够快速地对各种边界形状的计算域分布均匀粒子,并且避免了流体粒子穿透固体壁面的问题.     

Incorporation of smooth spherical bodies in the Lattice Boltzmann method

A method to simulate bodies suspended in a Lattice Boltzmann solvent is proposed. It is based on a generalized reaction force that enforces no-slip boundary conditions at the fluid–body interface as the limiting case of an iterative procedure. A smooth version of the Heaviside function allows to treat spherical particles of arbitrary size and produces smooth hydrodynamic forces as particles move in the continuum. Numerical tests demonstrate the accuracy of the method in reproducing the hydrodynamic field around a single particle and the fluid-mediated forces between pairs of particles. The drag force experienced by a particle moving in a straight channel and at various Reynolds numbers is studied as a non-trivial testcase.     

强磁场作用下Cu熔体中富Fe颗粒的迁移与排列

凝固界面前沿颗粒间的相互作用决定了颗粒的运动轨迹、分布和材料的性能,控制熔体中颗粒的迁移可用于材料的净化和提纯.在Cu-30%Fe合金液固两相区施加不同的强磁场条件,富Fe颗粒的分布和排列不尽相同.当无强磁场作用时,富Fe颗粒较均匀地分布在Cu熔体中;随着施加稳恒强磁场磁感应强度的增加,富Fe颗粒向远离重力方向的试样上端迁移,样品底部几乎无富Fe颗粒;而施加向下的梯度磁场作用后,富Fe颗粒沿重力方向向下迁移.结合强磁场作用下颗粒的受力情况,分析了Fe颗粒的迁移行为.不同磁场条件和不同区域的颗粒直径统计分析表明,随磁感应强度增加,Fe颗粒聚合增加,但施加梯度强磁场后颗粒的团聚又逐渐减弱,对此从影响颗粒运动的Stokes和Marangoni凝并速度进行了讨论.从能量最低的角度解释了富Fe相沿平行磁场方向的取向排列.     

Precise micro-particle and bubble manipulation by tunable ultrasonic bottle beams

This paper reports a method to generate tunable bottle beams using an ultrasonic lens, by which the bottle position can be precisely adjusted with the change of the acoustic frequency. Therefore, the position of a single particle or bubble in liquid can be manipulated without using phased array which is costly and huge with complex circuits. Furthermore, we introduced this method to multiple bubble manipulation using acoustic holography. The bottle properties against frequency are theoretically and experimentally analyzed. It is shown that the bottle position depends almost linearly on the operating frequency, which provides a basis for the precise manipulation of bubbles and particles. In addition, the relationship between the acoustic radiation force and the drag force under different incident acoustic pressures is considered, establishing a limit on the moving velocity of the trapped particles. The ultrasonic field observation is further demonstrated by Schlieren imaging system. The proposed method has potential biomedical applications, such as more flexible cell manipulation and targeted drug delivery in vivo, as well as potential applications in the study of chemical reactions between micro objects.     

基片与不同方位多形态缺陷粒子的复合光散射特性分析

结合光学表面无损检测工艺实际情况,给出基片与镶嵌及掩埋的球体/回转椭球体缺陷粒子的散射特性分析。针对基片与缺陷粒子的半空间问题,结合时域有限差分方法使用广义完全匹配吸收层(GPML),结合三波技术引入激励源,给出了相应的连接边界条件,并将互易性定理应用到近远场外推中,使过程简化。数值计算给出了镶嵌及掩埋的球体/回转椭球体缺陷粒子的散射场的角分布。结果显示:镶嵌比掩埋的缺陷粒子受粒子尺寸的影响更明显。在大散射角下,缺陷粒子的位置因素带来的贡献较大。粒子分别掩埋或镶嵌于基片时,在-10°、30°、70°附近的球体粒子和回转椭球体粒子的微分散射截面(DSCS)差别较大。在基片无损检测工程中可以通过对特定角度散射场的测量定标诊断出缺陷的方位和形态。     

The Colloidal Probe Technique and its Application to Adhesion Force Measurements

Knowledge of the interaction forces between colloidal particles and surfaces is a precondition for understanding the stability of dispersed systems and adhesion phenomena. One of the methods available for direct measurement of surface forces is the atomic force microscope (AFM). Based on this method the so called “colloidal probe technique” was developed more than 10 years ago. Using a micron‐sized particle glued to the end of an AFM cantilever as the force sensor, this technique is predestined for the study of colloidal interactions. In this review we describe the colloidal probe technique and give an overview of its application in the field of adhesion forces.