“…The ability to separate biological cells or micrometre-scale particles is imperative in biological studies, cellular analysis, pharmaceutical drug development, cell therapy, and chemical industries. [1][2][3] Conventional separation methods such as filtration, centrifugation, magnetic-activated cell sorting (MACS) and fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS), can effectively separate particles/cells. 4,5 However, these separation techniques are limited by either high cost (labelling agent, magnetic beads and sophisticated equipment), altered cell viability and functionality by fluorophores and antibodies, demand for highly-skilled operators, clogging and fouling, or extended processing time.…”