Methods and systems for sorting droplets are provided. In some cases, occupied droplets may be sorted from unoccupied droplets. In some cases, singularly occupied droplets may be sorted from unoccupied droplets and multiply occupied droplets. Methods and systems for sorting cell beads are provided. In some cases, cell beads may be sorted from particles unoccupied with cell derivatives. In some cases, singularly occupied cell beads may be sorted from unoccupied particles and multiply occupied cell beads. Methods and systems for selectively polymerizing droplets based on occupancy and size of the droplets are provided.

Devices, techniques, and processes are disclosed that use electrical impedance to detect of the presence and contents of droplets including cells, nucleic acids, proteins, or solute concentrations in an array of retrievable, trackable, trapped droplets in a fluidic system. Electrodes may be positioned underneath individual droplet traps in a microchannel to assay droplet contents and/or actuating droplets for the release of the droplets from corresponding traps. The disclosed technology may be used for detection of the results of solvent extraction processes including time-dependent quantification of metal ion concentration in the aqueous and organic phases, for wastewater treatment, heavy metal detection, pharmaceutical industry, and/or biotechnology, or for environmental monitoring of wastewater for toxic metal, monitoring of biological cell viability and proliferation, monitoring of extraction processes used in heavy metal mining, monitoring of extraction processes used in nuclear fuel processing, monitoring kinetics of enzyme processes, and/or assessing pharmacodynamics and drug efficacy.

The inventors have improved mass cytometer to facilitate its use for the analysis of particles.

A particulate matter detection device and a detection method, in particular, a detection device and detection method based on a dielectrophoresis and electrical impedance measurement technology is provided, and more in particular, an electrical impedance detection device utilizing a microfluidic chip, and an application thereof for detecting target particles are provided. The device comprises a sample introducing part, a main channel (3), a dielectrophoresis electric field generating part, and an electrical impedance measurement part. By using the dielectrophoresis electric field generating part to selectively control target cells, detection or counting is performed on a sample flexibly and precisely without the use of labels and antibodies.

A system for isolating and enumerating cells or particles from a fluid are disclosed. The system includes a microfluidic chip and an impedance chip fluidly connected to the microfluidic chip. The microfluidic chip includes a substrate and a microfluidic channel disposed in the substrate between an inlet and an outlet. The microfluidic channel generates a vortex within the at least one expansion region in response to fluid flowing through the microfluidic channel.

Methods for cell analysis are provided, comprising cell capturing, characterization, transport, and culture. In an exemplary method individual cells (and/or cellular units) are flowed into a microfluidic channel, the channel is partitioned into a plurality of contiguous segments, capturing at least one cell in at least one segment, A characteristic of one or more captured cells is determined and the cell(s) and combinations of cells are transported to specified cell holding chamber(s) based on the determined characteristic(s). Also provided are devices and systems for cell analysis.

A system and method for isolating and analyzing single cells, comprising: a substrate having a broad surface; a set of wells defined at the broad surface of the substrate, and a set of channels, defined by the wall, that fluidly couple each well to at least one adjacent well in the set of wells; and fluid delivery module defining an inlet and comprising a plate, removably coupled to the substrate, the plate defining a recessed region fluidly connected to the inlet and facing the broad surface of the substrate, the fluid delivery module comprising a cell capture mode.

The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for sorting cells. The apparatus for determining the mechanical properties of cells comprises: a microfluidic channel having an inlet and an outlet, the channel being configured to let a fluid containing cells pass therethrough, a means for introducing a fluid containing cells into the channel so as to establish a flow of the fluid within the channel, a cell shape measurement device arranged to obtain information of a deformed shape of a cell deformed due to the flow pattern created by the interaction of the fluid flow with the channel, and an analysis means arranged to use data from the cell shape measurement device to obtain mechanical properties of the cells.

A nanometer cutting depth high-speed single-point scratch test device includes a workbench, an air-bearing turntable, a test piece fixture, a test piece, a Z-direction feeding device, a nano positioning stage, a force sensor and a scratch tool. A micro convex structure with controllable length and height is machined in a position of the test piece to be scratched.

There is provided a substantially bare, self-supported single-layer graphene membrane including a nanopore extending through a thickness of the graphene membrane from a first to a second membrane surface opposite the first graphene membrane surface. A connection from the first graphene membrane surface to a first reservoir provides, at the first graphene membrane surface, a species in an ionic solution to the nanopore, and a connection from the second graphene membrane surface to a second reservoir is provided to collect the species and ionic solution after translocation of the species and ionic solution through the nanopore from the first graphene membrane surface to the second graphene membrane surface. An electrical circuit is connected on opposite sides of the nanopore to measure flow of ionic current through the nanopore in the graphene membrane.