Patent ID: 8172375

Claim:
A valve, comprising: a first passage configured to communicate an electrically conductive first liquid between two spaces that are separated from each other, which is not filled with the first liquid; a second passage branching from the first passage at a branching position, the second passage being configured to create a first wetting angle of the first liquid at a portion of the second passage in the vicinity of the branching position; a first electrode provided on a surface of the second passage at a position away from the branching position; and a first insulating film provided on a surface of the first electrode at the position away from the branching position and provided on the second passage at an adjacent region which is adjacent to the first electrode on an opposite side of the first passage, the first insulating film being configured to create a second wetting angle of the first liquid at the position away from the branching position when a predetermined voltage is applied to the first electrode and to create a third wetting angle of the first liquid at the position away from the branching position when the predetermined voltage is not applied to the first electrode, wherein the first wetting angle and the second wetting angle are less than the third wetting angle such that the first liquid is held at the branching position and blocks the first passage when the predetermined voltage is not applied to the first electrode.