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Electrowetting is a microfluidic phenomena that is currently enjoying growing popularity as a driving mechanism for a wide range of fluidic and electro-optic devices.
Electrowetting makes use of the natural forces intrinsic to an oil and water interface and methods developed for the manipulation of these forces. Separate oil and water phases are formed using a highly hydrophobic material which causes the water to be repelled from the surface, the oil film acting as an intermediate.
The wetting properties of the hydrophobic surface can be modified by the application of an electrical voltage (hence the name Electrowetting) and the surface becomes increasingly hydrophilic (wettable).
As the previously unwettable (hydrophobic) surface becomes increasingly attractive to the water, the oil is forced to adopt an alternative form. This manipulation of interfacial properties is what forms the basis of Electrowetting applications.
To form a display the principle of Electrowetting can be used to create a pixel modulator (see figure 1). The oil is colored with a dye which enables the creation of a display when different pixels are independently activated to make an image. The pixels, and therefore the display, can in principle be given any desired color.
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Figure 1
