Prolog to "Electric Field-Shaping Microdevices for Manipulation of Collections of Microscale Objects"

This paper presents an approach for manipulating tissue samples through dielectrophoresis (DEP), complemented by a programmable distributive process. In this approach, multiple electrical forces are applied particles in a nonuniform field that sorts them according to size and electrical properties. This facilitates greater motility of muscle cells and promotes the consequent growth of muscle fiber. In addition, a distributed DEP process has the ability to transfer thin, flexible, and delicate objects more easily and to orient them with heightened precision.