Focusing of sub-micrometer particles in microfluidic devices
Tianlong Zhang1, Zhen-Yi Hong2, Shi-Yang Tang3
1Division of Materials Science, Nara Institute of Science and Technology, Nara 630-0192, Japan. yaxiaer@ms.naist.jp and School of Engineering, Macquarie University, Sydney 2122, Australia. ming.li@mq.edu.au.
Lab on a Chip
|November 14, 2019
Summary
Microfluidic devices enable precise focusing of sub-micrometer particles for applications in biology and medicine. This review covers passive and active methods, bridging the gap between micro- and nanoparticle focusing techniques.
Area of Science:
- Biotechnology and Biomedical Engineering
- Nanotechnology and Materials Science
Background:
- Sub-micrometer particles (0.10-1.0 μm), including microvesicles and protein aggregates, are crucial in diagnostics and therapeutics.
- Precisely controlling sub-micrometer particle position is vital for downstream biological, chemical, and environmental analyses.
- Microfluidic devices offer advantages for sub-micrometer particle focusing, such as small size, low reagent use, and high throughput.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review microfluidic techniques for sub-micrometer particle focusing over the last decade.
- To bridge the understanding gap between micrometer and nanometer particle focusing.
- To provide insights into the development, current status, and future of microfluidic focusing technologies.
Main Methods:
- Classification of microfluidic focusing methods into passive (inertial, DLD, viscoelastic, hydrophoretic) and active (dielectrophoretic, thermophoretic, acoustophoretic, optical) techniques.
- Review of studies focusing on sub-micrometer particles using microfluidic devices.
- Analysis of advancements in continuous, label-free, and high-throughput sub-micrometer particle manipulation.
Main Results:
- Microfluidic advancements enable continuous, label-free, and high-throughput focusing of sub-micrometer particles.
- Passive methods leverage intrinsic fluid properties, while active methods employ external fields for particle manipulation.
- The review consolidates knowledge on sub-micrometer particle focusing, differentiating it from micrometer and nanometer scales.
Conclusions:
- Microfluidic focusing is a key technology for manipulating sub-micrometer particles, with diverse applications.
- Both passive and active microfluidic methods offer effective strategies for particle focusing.
- Continued research in microfluidic focusing promises enhanced capabilities for particle analysis and manipulation.
