The trend of miniaturization in biophotonics demands the integration of microoptical and microfluidic components in microchips with true 3D configurations. Recently, we developed a one-continuous processing for formation of true 3D hollow microstructures in the glass chip by femtosecond laser direct write followed by annealing and successive chemical etching, facilitating precise, efficient, and cost-effective manufacturing. Using this technique, a variety of microreaction structures have been fabricated. Besides, microoptical components like a micromirror and a microbeam splitter have been embedded in the glass. Furthermore, microfluidic dye lasers three-dimensionally embedded in glass have been fabricated for the first time by integrating the microoptical and microfluidic components. By pumping the microfluidic laser, in which the microfluidic chamber was filled with laser dye rhodamine 6G dissolved in ethanol, by a frequency-doubled Nd:YAG laser, lasing action was confirmed by analyzing the emission spectra at different pumping powers. In addition, by arranging two microfluidic chambers serially in the glass, we built a microfluidic twin-laser which produces an array of two simultaneous laser emissions with one pumping laser. The integration of lasers in a microchip would be very attractive for biophotonic application, since the laser can be used as light source for biological analysis by optical means in micro-total analysis systems (micro-TAS), in which introduction and reaction of reagents and analysis of reactants are successively conducted in a single microchip.
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