The invention relates to a device for examining particles in a liquid to be examined, comprising a flow passage through which the liquid to be examined is moved. The flow passage has at least one inlet through which at least one sheath fluid flows into the flow passage such that the at least one sheath fluid forms at least one sheath flow in the flow passage. The device further comprises a wave generating device for piezoacoustically generating sound waves which propagate through the flow passage transversely to the flow direction of the liquid to be examined and form wave nodes on a monitoring plane such that particles to be examined of the liquid to be examined are moved onto the monitoring plane and accumulate thereon on the basis of the pressure effect of the sound waves in the transverse direction.

A particle control method configured prevent an extremely small quantity of particles descending on a stream of a laminar flow in a clean zone through which the laminar flow flows (as in a RABS or isolator device) from descending to a specific position or to guide the particles so as to have them descend to a specific position by controlling movement of the particles.

[Solution]

A particle descent position is separated away from a board surface of the oscillation board by using an acoustic radiation pressure generated by prompting ultrasonic vibration of the oscillation board disposed with a board surface substantially in parallel with a flow direction of the laminar flow. Moreover, by using a node of a standing wave field generated by prompting the ultrasonic vibration of two oscillation boards disposed with the board surfaces faced with each other, the particle is guided to a direction of a node of a standing wave field. Moreover, by using a focal point of the ultrasonic wave generated by prompting the ultrasonic wave of four oscillation boards, that is, two pairs disposed with the board surfaces faced with each other, the particle is guided to the focal point of the ultrasonic wave.

An apparatus for microfluidic flow cytometry analysis of a particulate containing fluid An apparatus for microfluidic flow cytometry analysis of a particulate containing fluid comprises a hydrodynamic focussing apparatus for providing a focused stream of particulate containing fluid; and a microfluidic chip. The chip has a plurality of layers and comprises a microfluidic channel that extends through the chip substantially orthogonal to a plane of the layers of the chip, and is in fluid communication with the hydrodynamic focusing apparatus for receipt of a focused steam of particulate containing fluid. The chip also comprises a detection zone comprising at least one pair of electrodes in electrical communication with the microfluidic channel. At least one pair of electrodes comprise an excitation electrode coupled to an AC signal source and a detection electrode configured to detect AC impedance changes in the microfluidic channel between the electrodes resulting from particles passing between the electrodes in the microfluidic channel. Methods of sorting mammalian sperm cells according to sex is also described.

A particle analyzer, comprising a source of a substantially nondiffracting light beam; a flow path configured to produce in a flowcell a ribbon-like core stream having a specific cross-sectional aspect ratio; the flowcell being configured to expose a segment of the core stream to the light beam; a detector configured to receive a signal resulting from an interaction of a particle in the core stream with the light beam; a first sorting actuator connected with the flowcell, downstream of the exposed segment of core stream; a plurality of sorting channels in fluid connection with the flow path and downstream of the first actuator; the actuator having multiple actuation states, each state configured to direct at least one part of the core stream to a corresponding channel; a second sorting actuator connected with the flowcell, opposite the first actuator, and operable in coordination with the first actuator.

A particle control method is provided which can prevent an extremely small quantity of particles descending on a stream of a laminar flow in a clean zone through which the laminar flow flows as in a RABS or isolator device from descending to a specific position or can guide it so as to descend to the specific position by controlling movement of the particles. A particle descent position is separated away from a board surface of the oscillation board by using an acoustic radiation pressure generated by prompting ultrasonic vibration of the oscillation board disposed with a board surface substantially in parallel with a flow direction of the laminar flow.

The invention relates to a method for ordering, sorting and/or focusing particles in a first microfluidic channel system, the method comprising the steps of i) providing for a first microfluidic channel comprising at least a first and a second inlet and a first outlet, ii) injecting a first fluid into the channel through said first inlet, iii) injecting a second fluid into the channel through said second inlet, wherein the viscosity of the first fluid is higher than the viscosity of the second fluid, such that the two fluids flow in a laminar fashion unmixed side by side, and one of the two fluids comprises the particles to be ordered, sorted and/or focused. The invention also relates to a microfluidic channel system for sorting different particles into one droplet.

Provided herein, among other aspects, are methods and apparatuses for analyzing particles in a sample. In some aspects, the particles can be analytes, cells, nucleic acids, or proteins and can be contacted with a tag, partitioned into aliquots, detected by a ranking device, and isolated. The methods and apparatuses provided herein may include a microfluidic chip. In some aspects, the methods and apparatuses may be used to quantify rare particles in a sample, such as cancer cells and other rare cells for disease diagnosis, prognosis, or treatment.

Cell sorting methods that improve sorting efficiency and productivity by elevating sorting pressures and incorporate certain steps to help the cells better survive such elevated pressures. In the case of sperm, sorting the steps of standardizing sperm samples, staining sperm samples in a single step, calibrating a flow cytometer to place sperm in the leading edge of droplets, and changing a catch fluid distance may be incorporated individually, or in combination to help sperm better survive the sex sorting process.

A particle focusing system includes an inlet; an inertial focusing microchannel disposed in a substrate and connected to the inlet; and a pressure/flow source configured to drive a particle-containing fluid through the inertial focusing microchannel, where the inertial focusing microchannel includes a side wall having an irregular surface. The side wall includes a first irregularity protruding from a baseline surface away from a longitudinal axis of the inertial focusing microchannel. Alternatively or additionally, the first irregularity and the baseline surface form an angle more than or equal to 135 degrees. The inertial focusing microchannel may have a substantially rectangular cross-section having a height and a width, and a ratio of height to width is approximately 5:4 to 4:1. The system may also include a downstream expanding region having a side wall, where the side wall has a stepped surface.

A sensor is provided for detecting and characterizing particles in a fluid. The sensor has a microfluidic channel for receiving the fluid sample, an acoustic transducer module configured to generate a standing wave for concentrating the particles in a region of the microfluidic channel; an optical detection module configured to detect optical signals scattered by the particles upon illuminating the region of the fluid sample with a light source; and a data processing module configured to characterize the particles of the fluid sample based on the optical signals using a classifier.