Micro and nanoparticle manipulation
Fine-scale control of atoms and particles has lead to key advances in many fields of science and engineering. Particle trapping is a pervasive technology with many important applications and a rich toolbox. To date, a wide array of confinement and manipulation techniques using various force fields (e.g. electric, magnetic, optical) has been developed in order to obtain exquisite control over the position and velocity of micro and nanoscale particles suspended in aqueous solution. Recently, we developed two new methods for particle trapping based on the sole action of hydrodynamic forces in microfluidic devices: The hydrodynamic trap and the microfluidic Wheatstone bridge.
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Integrated Devices for Molecular Diagnostics
Rapid and ultrasensitive multiplexed assays could significantly improve the quality of healthcare by reducing turnaround time and analysis cost, and speeding up the decision making process for diagnosis and treatment. Microfluidic approaches offer several key advantages for diagnostic applications, including miniaturized instrumentation, reduced amounts of sample and reagents for analysis, and integration of assay steps such as sample preparation (processing of physiological fluids), post-processing (e.g. reagent mixing, labeling, separation), detection and analysis into a single device. Miniaturization often improves detection sensitivity and facilitates portability for remote or point-of-care diagnostics. To address these challenges, we developed integrated devices and ultrasensitive sensor platforms for molecular diagnostics.
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