Disclosed is an apparatus and method for the mixing of two microfluidic
channels wherein several wells are oriented diagonally across the width
of a mixing channel. The device effectively mixes the confluent streams
with electrokinetic flow, and to a lesser degree, with pressure driven
flow. The device and method may be further adapted to split a pair of
confluent streams into two or more streams of equal or non-equal
concentrations of reactants. Further, under electrokinetic flow, the
surfaces of said wells may be specially coated so that the differing
electroosmotic mobility between the surfaces of the wells and the
surfaces of the channel may increase the mixing efficiency. The device
and method are applicable to the steady state mixing as well as the
dynamic application of mixing a plug of reagent with a confluent stream.