Editorial for the special issue on gas flows in microsystems

International audienceThe last two decades have witnessed a rapid development of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) involving gas microflows in various technical fields. Gas microflows can, for example, be observed in micro heat exchangers designed for chemical applications or for cooling of electronic components, in fluidic microactuators developed for active flow control purposes, in micronozzles used for the micropropulsion of nano-and picosatellites, in micro gas chromatographs, analyzers or separators, in vacuum generators and in Knudsen micropumps, as well as in some organs-on-a-chip such as artificial lungs