In accordance with an embodiment, a microfluidic chip including a first cells enrichment system and a second cells enrichment system is provided. Channel layouts of the first and the second cells enrichment systems are symmetric with respect to a reflection plane vertical to the microfluidic chip. Each of the first the second cells enrichment systems includes a first fluid channel, a second fluid channel, a sample channel, an inlet channel, and a filtration chamber. The sample channel of the first cells enrichment system has a first inner wall and a first outer wall. The sample channel of the second cells enrichment system has a second inner wall and a second outer wall. The first outer wall and the second outer wall are both far from the reflection plane. A distance between the first outer wall and the second outer wall is in the range from about 10 m to about 1 cm.

A biological detection system for detecting a liquid sample containing a plurality of target biological particles includes a capturing device including a cell structure, an inlet, an outlet, a monolithic chip, and a layer of binding agent. The monolithic chip includes a substrate and a plurality of discrete nano-sized structures which are displaced from each other and each of which extends uprightly from the substrate to terminate at a top end. The layer of binding agent is formed on the top end of each of the discrete nano-sized structures for capturing the target biological particles.

Disclosed herein are methods, devices, and systems for efficient loading and retrieval of particles. In some embodiments, a fluidic channel of a flowcell comprises a ceiling, a first sidewall, and a bottom, wherein the contact angle of the ceiling is at least 10 degrees smaller than the contact angle of the first sidewall, and wherein the bottom of the fluidic channel comprises a substrate that comprises a plurality of microwells.

Disclosed is a device, suitable for use as an acoustic resonator, including a base adapted to be coupled to at least one acoustic wave generator, a spacer including an aperture and a reflector, wherein the base includes a protruding part having a thickness t; the aperture of the spacer is complementary to the protruding part of the base; the device further includes a housing having an aperture complementary to the protruding part of the base and wherein the inner edge of the aperture has the same thickness t than the protruding part; and the housing is positioned between the spacer and the reflector, such that the thickness of the inner edge of the spacer defined the thickness of a cavity between the protruding part and the reflector. Also disclosed is a method of trapping particles in a fluid.

A device and method for detecting particles by using electrical impedance measurement, in particular, relating to an improved electrical impedance measurement microfluidic chip and an improved particle detection method. The device comprises a sample injection part, a main channel (4) and an electrical impedance detection part. By means of said device and method, the present invention can accurately distinguish, detect and count different particles.

The present invention provides an apparatus and method for washing and concentrating microparticles encapsulated in microscale droplets using an acoustic radiation force. The apparatus includes: a piezoelectric substrate; a slanted finger interdigital transducer (SIDT) electrode deposited on the piezoelectric substrate and configured to generate surface acoustic waves under an AC signal applied thereto; and a microfluidic chip which is adhered to the piezoelectric substrate with being spaced apart from the SIDT electrode, has a microscale channel section formed therein, in which a single continuous phase and a plurality of dispersed phases are injected, respectively, and includes a plurality of inlet ports into which continuous and dispersed phases are injected, and a discharge port from which a plurality of droplets composed of the continuous and dispersed phases and generated by the intersection thereof are discharged.

The present invention encompasses a micro-fluidic system having a closed-loop configuration in which inertial micro-fluidic separation of particles and/or cells is continuously repeated by feeding part of the output back to the input so that the purity and/or concentration of the particles and/or cell is maximized. The invention also includes methods of using the micro-fluidic system.

A sensor device (30) includes an oscillation unit formed in a semiconductor integrated circuit (40) and having an oscillation frequency which changes in accordance with a physical property of an analyte which comes into contact with the oscillation unit; an oscillation frequency detection unit configured to detect the oscillation frequency, and one or more electrode pairs (36) configured to move a specific analyte dispersed in liquid to an arbitrary location.

A microfluidic device for detecting rare cells in a fluid sample comprises the rare cell and other cells. The microfluidic device comprises an inlet for receiving the fluid sample, a labyrinth channel structure in fluid communication with the inlet, and an outlet in fluid communication with the labyrinth channel structure for collecting the rare cells separated from the other cells in the fluid sample. The labyrinth channel structure comprises at least one channel through which the fluid sample flows. The at least one channel has a plurality of segments and a plurality of corners with each corner defined between adjacent segments. The presence of the plurality of corners induces separation of the rare cells from the other cells in the fluid sample as the rare cells move to a first equilibrium position within the at least one channel when a ratio of inertial lift forces (F.sub.Z) and Dean flow (F.sub.D) of the fluid sample is from 2 to 10.

Particle detection cartridges are provided. Aspects of the particle detection cartridges according to certain embodiments include a sample input, a flow channel and a light channel, where the flow channel and light channel are coupled at a detection region such that only light from the detection region can propagate directly through the light channel to a detector. Systems including the cartridges, as well as methods for detecting particles in a sample with the subject particle detection cartridges/systems, are also described. Kits having one or more cartridges are also provided.