Toward the commercialization of optofluidics

Optofluidics is a marriage between the field of optics and microfluidics. This field aims at providing practical solutions with the integration of optical tools into lab-on-chip systems. Often, this results in opportunities for commercialization due to the advancement offered after the integration. Although numerous novel functions and properties have been demonstrated with the combination of optics and microfluidics, the market has witnessed only few transferals of optofluidic technologies from academic laboratories. This stemmed from a lack of a “killer applications” despite several decades of development. Therefore, it is necessary to have a retrospective review on this topic, particularly on the basic optofluidic components, to analyze what might be the hurdles to stop the market uptake of optofluidic devices. Specifically, this review paper is focused on discussion of optofluidic components in terms of fabrication standardization, device and operational cost and practicability for end users. It is believed that these factors play important roles in the market uptake of a novel technology. We then provide perspectives on how to align the development of optofluidics with the requirements imposed by the industry.