Patterning of nanowires in a controllable, tunable manner is important for the fabrication of functional nanodevices. Here we present a simple approach for tunable nanowire patterning using standing surface acoustic waves (SSAW). This technique allows for the construction of large-scale nanowire arrays with well-controlled patterning geometry and spacing within 5 seconds. In this approach, SSAWs were generated by interdigital transducers (IDTs), which induced a periodic alternating current (AC) electric field on the piezoelectric substrate and consequently patterned metallic nanowires in suspension. The patterns could be deposited onto the substrate after the liquid evaporated. By controlling the distribution of the SSAW field, metallic nanowires were assembled into different patterns including parallel and perpendicular arrays. The spacing of the nanowire arrays could be tuned by controlling the frequency of the surface acoustic waves. Additionally, we observed 3D spark-shape nanowire patterns in the SSAW field. The SSAW-based nanowire-patterning technique presented here possesses several advantages over alternative patterning approaches, including high versatility, tunability, and efficiency, making it promising for device applications.

In this work, we demonstrate an integrated, single-layer, miniature flow cytometry device that is capable of multi-parametric particle analysis. The device integrates both particle focusing and detection components on-chip, including a "microfluidic drifting" based three-dimensional (3D) hydrodynamic focusing component and a series of optical fibers integrated into the microfluidic architecture to facilitate onchip detection. With this design, multiple optical signals (i.e., forward scatter, side scatter, and fluorescence) from individual particles can be simultaneously detected. Experimental results indicate that the performance of our flow cytometry chip is comparable to its bulky, expensive desktop counterpart. The integration of on-chip 3D particle focusing with on-chip multi-parametric optical detection in a singlelayer, mass-producible microfluidic device presents a major step towards low-cost flow cytometry chips for point-of-care clinical diagnostics. V C 2012 American Institute of Physics. [http://dx

The development of microfluidic chip-based cytometers has become an important area due to their advantages of compact size and low cost. Herein, we demonstrate a sheathless microfluidic cytometer which integrates a standing surface acoustic wave (SSAW)-based microdevice capable of 3D particle/cell focusing with a laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) detection system. Using SSAW, our microfluidic cytometer was able to continuously focus microparticles/cells at the pressure node inside a microchannel. Flow cytometry was successfully demonstrated using this system with a coefficient of variation (CV) of less than 10% at a throughput of ~1000 events/s when calibration beads were used. We also demonstrated that fluorescently labeled human promyelocytic leukemia cells (HL-60) could be effectively focused and detected with our SSAW-based system. This SSAW-based microfluidic cytometer did not require any sheath flows or complex structures, and it allowed for simple operation over a wide range of sample flow rates. Moreover, with the gentle, bio-compatible nature of low-power surface acoustic waves, this technique is expected to be able to preserve the integrity of cells and other bioparticles.

During the deep reactive ion etching process, the sidewalls of a silicon mold feature rough wavy structures, which can be transferred onto a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microchannel through the soft lithography technique. In this article, we utilized the wavy structures of PDMS microchannel sidewalls to initiate and cavitate bubbles in the presence of acoustic waves. Through bubble cavitation, this acoustofluidic approach demonstrates fast, effective mixing in microfluidics. We characterized its performance by using viscous fluids such as poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG). When two PEG solutions with a resultant viscosity 54.9 times higher than that of water were used, the mixing efficiency was found to be 0.92, indicating excellent, homogeneous mixing. The acoustofluidic micromixer presented here has the advantages of simple fabrication, easy integration, and capability to mix high-viscosity fluids (Reynolds number: ∼0.01) in less than 100 ms.

Successful intracellular delivery of nucleic acid therapeutics relies on multi-aspect optimization, one of which is formulation. While there has been ample innovation on chemical design of polymeric gene carriers, the same cannot be said for physical processing of polymer-DNA nanocomplexes (polyplexes). Conventional synthesis of polyplexes by bulk mixing depends on the operators’ experience. The poorly controlled bulk-mixing process may also lead to batch-to-batch variation and consequent irreproducibility. Here, we synthesize polyplexes by using a three-dimensional hydrodynamic focusing (3D-HF) technique in a single-layered, planar microfluidic device. Without any additional chemical treatment or post processing, the polyplexes prepared by the 3D-HF method show smaller size, slower aggregation rate, and higher transfection efficiency, while exhibiting reduced cytotoxicity compared to the ones synthesized by conventional bulk mixing. In addition, by introducing external acoustic perturbation, mixing can be further enhanced, leading to even smaller nanocomplexes. The 3D-HF method provides a simple and reproducible process for synthesizing high-quality polyplexes, addressing a critical barrier in the eventual translation of nucleic acid therapeutics.

The motion of red blood cells (RBCs) in microchannels is important for microvascular blood flow and biomedical applications such as blood analysis in microfluidics. The current understanding of the complexity of RBC shapes and dynamics in microchannels is mainly based on several simulation studies, but there are a few systematic experimental investigations. Here, we present a combined study that systematically characterizes RBC behavior for a wide range of flow rates and channel sizes. Even though simulations and experiments generally show good agreement, experimental observations demonstrate that there is no single well-defined RBC state for fixed flow conditions but rather a broad distribution of states. This result can be attributed to the inherent variability in RBC mechanical properties, which is confirmed by a model that takes the variation in RBC shear elasticity into account. This represents a significant step toward a quantitative connection between RBC behavior in microfluidic devices and their mechanical properties, which is essential for a high-throughput characterization of diseased cells.

Selective isolation of cell subpopulations with defined biological characteristics is crucial for many biological studies and clinical applications. In this work, we present the development of an acoustofluidic fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS) device that simultaneously performs on-demand, high-throughput, high-resolution cell detection and sorting, integrated onto a single chip. Our acoustofluidic FACS device uses the “microfluidic drifting” technique to precisely focus cells/particles three dimensionally and achieves a flow of single-file particles/cells as they pass through a laser interrogation region. We then utilize short bursts (150 μs) of standing surface acoustic waves (SSAW) triggered by an electronic feedback system to sort fluorescently labeled particles/cells with desired biological properties. We have demonstrated continuous isolation of fluorescently labeled HeLa cells from unlabeled cells at a throughput of ~1200 events/s with a purity reaching 92.3 ± 3.39%. Furthermore, 99.18% postsort cell viability indicates that our acoustofluidic sorting technique maintains a high integrity of cells. Therefore, our integrated acoustofluidic FACS device is demonstrated to achieve two-way cell sorting with high purity, biocompatibility, and biosafety. We believe that our device has significant potential for use as a low-cost, high-performance, portable, and user-friendly FACS instrument.

We demonstrate the first microfluidic-based on-chip liquefaction device for human sputum samples. Our device is based on an acoustofluidic micromixer using oscillating sharp edges. This acoustofluidic sputum liquefier can effectively and uniformly liquefy sputum samples at a throughput of 30 μL min(-1). Cell viability and integrity are maintained during the sputum liquefaction process. Our acoustofluidic sputum liquefier can be conveniently integrated with other microfluidic units to enable automated on-chip sputum processing and analysis.