A self-triggered picoinjector in microfluidics

Droplet-based microfluidics has recently emerged as a potential platform for studies of single-cell, directed evolution, and genetic sequencing. In droplet-based microfluidics, adding reagents into drops is one of the most important functions. In this paper, we develop a new self-triggered picoinjec...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Yiming Yang, Songsheng Liu, Chunping Jia, Hongju Mao, Qinghui Jin, Jianlong Zhao, Hongbo Zhou
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: AIP Publishing LLC 2016-12-01
Series:AIP Advances
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4972551
Description
Summary:Droplet-based microfluidics has recently emerged as a potential platform for studies of single-cell, directed evolution, and genetic sequencing. In droplet-based microfluidics, adding reagents into drops is one of the most important functions. In this paper, we develop a new self-triggered picoinjector to add controlled volumes of reagent into droplets at kilohertz rates. In the picoinjector, the reagent injecting is triggered by the coming droplet itself, without needing a droplet detection module. Meanwhile, the dosing volume can be precisely controlled. These features make the system more practical and reliable. We expect the new picoinjector will find important applications of droplet-based microfluidics in automated biological assay, directed evolution, enzyme assay, and so on.
ISSN:2158-3226