Local wettability of silica glass surface is modified by infrared laser irradiation. The silica glass surface exhibits hydrophobic property in the presence of -CF3 or (CH3)(2) terminal functional groups, which are decomposed by thermal treatment, and degree of the decomposition depends on the applied heat. Laser irradiation can control the number of remaining functional groups according to the irradiation conditions; the contact angle of deionized water on the laser modified surfaces range from 100 degrees to 40 degrees. XPS analysis confirms that the variation in wettability corresponds to the number of remaining -CF3 groups. The laser irradiation achieves surface modification without causing any cracks or damages to the surface, as observed by SEM and AFM; moreover, surface transparency to visible light and surface roughness remains unaffected. The proposed method is applied to plane flow channel systems. Dropped water spreads only on the hydrophilic and invisible line modified by the laser irradiation without formation of any grooves. This indicates that the modified line can act as a surface channel. Furthermore, self-transportation of liquid is also demonstrated on a channel with gradually-varied wettability along its length. A water droplet on a hydrophobic side is self-transported to a hydrophilic side due to contact-angle hysteresis force without any actuators or external forces. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.