Ultrasonic manipulation of particles in an open fluid film

Ultrasonic manipulation is a noncontact method of trapping and holding particles in suspension, and has found many applications in microfluidic systems. Typically, ultrasonic standing waves are used; this approach is well established in fully enclosed microfluidic systems consisting of channels or chambers with an attached piezoelectric actuator. In this work, we examine the use of ultrasonic manipulation in open fluid films, which offer a high degree of accessibility. A piezoelectric actuator is presented which can be lowered into a separate fluid tray. This two-part system offers a high degree of flexibility; indeed the actuator can be removed with little disturbance to the particle patterns, so manipulation could potentially be periodically applied as required. Particle manipulation is shown to be possible over a distance many times the size of the actuator. Furthermore, particle manipulation can also be achieved in a tilted fluid film, so alignment between the two parts of the system is not critical to its operation.