An electronic microfluidic switch using dielectrophoresis for control of microparticles

By making use of the advantages offered by micro and nanotechnologies, we aim to develop technologies which will decrease cost, increase assay speed, and improve limit of detection in biomolecular assays. Increasing sensitivity can enable earlier detection, and also can allow for identification of low-abundance markers that are not detectable with current techniques. We have previously developed a microfluidic platform capable of detecting enzyme activity at the attomolar level [1]. In order to transform this technology into a high throughput multiplexed assay, while maintaining low cost, instead of using microfluidic valves which requires extensive tubing and external pumps, it is desirable to achieve fluidic control of microparticles electrically. Using modern VLSI techniques, routing of hundreds or even thousands of electrodes and interconnects on a silicon chip is trivial compared to the requirement of connecting hundreds of tubes to a fluidic chip, which can become a plumbers nightmare.