Fig. 5

a Experimental temperature at the chip center during a worm culture-to-imaging transition, as managed by the active temperature control system, indicating the periods of PF127 injection and chip temperature changes. b Temperature rise in the 15–19 min period in more detail. The axis on the right shows the variation of PF127 solution viscosity (25 % w/v in water) during the transition from 15 to 25 °C in the device. The PF127 sol–gel transition occurs abruptly at about 17 °C, in a time window of ~1 min. Values of PF127 viscosity at the different temperatures are measured through a cone-plate viscometer