Benchtop picoliter printing

The SonoPlot Microplotter® Proto is a benchtop picoliter fluid dispensing system for the microarray and printed electronics markets with significant advantages over existing products in deposited feature size and type, regularity of volumes dispensed, and flexibility for the user.

The core of the Microplotter® technology is a dispenser that uses controlled ultrasonics to deposit fluid in a non-contact manner. 

This patented technology can produce picoliter droplets that form features on a surface as small as 30 μm wide.

When combined with automatic surface height calibration, coefficients of variability for deposited feature diameters as small as 10% can be achieved.

A wide range of fluids can be used, including aqueous solutions and many organic-solvent-based mixtures. 

Fluids that other dispensers struggle with, such as saturated solutions for MALDI-ToF matrices, or fluids with viscosities up to 450 cP, such as nano-particle suspensions or conductive inks, can be deposited with ease. 

The ultrasonic pumping action is also an efficient cleaning mechanism for quickly depositing many solutions sequentially.

In addition to spots, the Microplotter® Proto can draw true continuous features, such as lines, arcs, and bends. 

These are uniform elements, not made from overlapping droplets like other technologies, and are particularly well-suited to the polymer.

Technical Specifications

Feature size                 30 μm - 200 μm

Feature types               Droplets and contiquous lines

Deposition volume       ≥1.8 PL

Deposition variability    As low as 10%

Viscosity                     ≤450cP

Positioning                  31 x 31 x 7 cm (X, Y, Z axes)

                                  20 μm resolution

Calibration                  Automatic surface height calibration

Camera                       Digital video capture & recording

Computer                    Included iMac

Software                     SonoGuide control & SonoDraw CAD tools included

Dimensions                 58.4 x 59.7 x 61 cm (23 x 23.5 x 24 in.)

Weight                        TBA

Power                         3.0 A for 100-120 V or 1.5 A for 220-240 V