Imaging apparatus 10 for imaging nozzle section 21 of droplet dispenser device 20 includes illumination device 11 arranged for creating illumination light directed along illumination axis A1 towards an illumination range configured for accommodating nozzle section 21, and camera device 12 having imaging axis A2 directed to the illumination range. Camera device 12 is configured for collecting nozzle image(s) of nozzle section 21 arranged in the illumination range, wherein illumination device 11 and camera device 12 are arranged for dark field illumination of nozzle section 21. Illumination axis A1 and imaging axis A2 are slanted relative to each other and an illumination angle between axes A1 and A2 is selected such that the at least one nozzle image is collected with a dark background. Furthermore, dispenser apparatus 100 for dispensing droplets on a target and an imaging method for imaging nozzle section 21 of droplet dispenser device 20 are described.

Nanoliter pipette assembly. The assembly includes a housing containing a working fluid in a working fluid chamber therein and includes a moveable piston within the housing, the piston moveable by a linear actuation mechanism for contact with the working fluid. A tip portion is provided that includes a diaphragm deformable to engage an inner portion of the tip. It is preferred that the diaphragm have a projecting three-dimensional structure for direct contact with a liquid.

Methods, devices, and systems for performing nebulization of a sample from a fluid channel of a microfluidic device are described. The systems or devices disclosed herein may comprise microfluidic devices that comprise a gas channel used for nebulization of the sample at a fluid outlet of the microfluidic device. In some instances, the disclosed devices may be designed to perform isoelectric focusing followed by further characterization of the separated analytes using electrospray ionization coupled with nebulization to introduce the samples into a mass spectrometer. The disclosed methods, devices, and systems provide for fast, accurate separation and characterization of protein analyte mixtures or other biological molecules by isoelectric point.

Disclosed herein are methods for producing high density cellular arrays. In some embodiments, the methods comprise: providing a sample comprising a plurality of cells; and introducing the plurality of cells in the sample into microwells of a microwell array to produce a cellular array, wherein the microwell array comprises 500 or more microwells per inch.sup.2, and wherein 25% or more of the microwells of the cellular array comprise a single cell. The disclosed methods can be used for producing a high density synthetic particle array and a high density reagent array.

Various aspects of the present invention relate to the control and manipulation of fluidic species, for example, in microfluidic systems. In one aspect, the invention relates to systems and methods for making droplets of fluid surrounded by a liquid, using, for example, electric fields, mechanical alterations, the addition of an intervening fluid, etc. In another aspect, the invention relates to systems and methods for dividing a fluidic droplet into two droplets, for example, through charge and/or dipole interactions with an electric field. The invention also relates to systems and methods for fusing droplets, according to another aspect of the invention, for example, through charge and/or dipole interactions. Another aspect of the invention provides the ability to determine droplets, or a component thereof, for example, using fluorescence and/or other optical techniques (e.g., microscopy), or electric sensing techniques such as dielectric sensing.

A microfluidic chip, device, system, the use thereof and method for the generation of aqueous droplets in emulsion oil for nucleic acid amplification.

Described is a dispensing needle for a fraction collector. The dispensing needle includes a conduit having a fluid channel to conduct a chromatographic flow, an interior wall that defines the fluid channel, an exterior surface and an endface through which the chromatographic flow is dispensed. The dispensing needle also includes a coating of a hydrocarbon material or a fluorocarbon material that is bonded to the endface. The coating is also bonded to at least a portion of the exterior surface that is adjacent to the endface and at least a portion of the interior wall that is adjacent to the endface. The coating operates to reduce a droplet volume of a liquid dispensed from the endface that may remain at the tip of the dispensing needle. Consequently, the concentration variation in a collected fraction due to a missing droplet or extra droplet is reduced.

Disclosed is a liquid discharging nozzle, including a needle stem having a hollow chamber and an outlet end located at one end of the needle stem, an angle between a normal line of an end surface of the outlet end of the liquid discharging nozzle and an extension direction of the needle stem is equal to or smaller than 90°. Further disclosed are a motion controlling mechanism, a microdroplet generating device and method, a liquid driving mechanism and method, a microdroplet generating method, and a surface processing method of a liquid discharging nozzle.

A perforate element (101) for use in a print head for non-contact liquid printing comprises: at least one ejection element (103) including an outlet (103a), configured to eject a bulk flow (F) of printing liquid (L) out of the print head; and a liquid residence element (107), arranged to provide a layer of liquid over the outlet (103a) which extends laterally of the outlet (103a) and through which the bulk flow (F) is ejected.

There is provided a droplet sorting device including a detector configured to detect a state of droplets ejected from an orifice that generates a fluid stream and of satellite droplets existing between the droplets, and a controller configured to control a frequency of a driving voltage supplied to a vibration element that applies vibration to the orifice on the basis of positions where the satellite droplets exist.