Patent ID: 6524517
Filing Date: 2003-02-25
Classification: B29C,B29L,H01L

Abstract:
A method of molding a thin film onto an electronically addressable microchip surface comprising:a. in a microreaction mold system comprising: i. a window element comprising a material transparent to at least one wavelength of electromagnetic radiation, the window element further having an upper surface which forms the bottom of at least one mold cavity, the cavity having a depth of between 100 nm and 100 &mgr;m; ii. at least one mold cavity side; and iii. a top comprising an electronically addressable microchip substrate to which a solidifiable chemical composition placed in the cavity, and in contact with the top, may become bound upon solidifying inside the cavity, dispensing onto the window element of the microreaction mold system a solidifiable hydrogel composition comprising polymerizable monomers and a polymerization initiator compound, wherein the polymerization initiator compound is sensitive to an activation energy to which the window element is transparent; b. bringing the substrate surface into tight juncture with the sides of the mold cavity to form the top of the microreaction mold system; c. exposing the microreaction mold to an activation energy source, whereby the mold cavity is exposed to the activation energy transmitted through the window element, at an energy level sufficient to initiate polymerization of the monomers, for between 2 and 2000 seconds; and d. separating the mold from the substrate to reveal the film molded to the surface of the substrate.