High-yield and rapid isolation of extracellular vesicles by flocculation via orbital acoustic trapping: FLOAT

Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have been identified as promising biomarkers for the noninvasive diagnosis of various diseases. However, challenges in separating EVs from soluble proteins have resulted in variable EV recovery rates and low purities. Here, we report a high-yield ( > 90%) and rapid ( < 10 min) EV isolation method called FLocculation via Orbital Acoustic Trapping (FLOAT). The FLOAT approach utilizes an acoustofluidic droplet centrifuge to rotate and controllably heat liquid droplets. By adding a thermoresponsive polymer flocculant, nanoparticles as small as 20 nm can be rapidly and selectively concentrated at the center of the droplet. We demonstrate the ability of FLOAT to separate urinary EVs from the highly abundant Tamm-Horsfall protein, addressing a significant obstacle in the development of EV-based liquid biopsies. Due to its high-yield nature, FLOAT reduces biofluid starting volume requirements by a factor of 100 (from 20 mL to 200 µL), demonstrating its promising potential in point-of-care diagnostics.

Acoustic tweezers for high-throughput single-cell analysis

Acoustic tweezers provide an effective means for manipulating single cells and particles in a high-throughput, precise, selective and contact-free manner. The adoption of acoustic tweezers in next-generation cellular assays may advance our understanding of biological systems. Here we present a comprehensive set of instructions that guide users through device fabrication, instrumentation setup and data acquisition to study single cells with an experimental throughput that surpasses traditional methods, such as atomic force microscopy and micropipette aspiration, by several orders of magnitude. With acoustic tweezers, users can conduct versatile experiments that require the trapping, patterning, pairing and separation of single cells in a myriad of applications ranging across the biological and biomedical sciences. This procedure is widely generalizable and adaptable for investigations in materials and physical sciences, such as the spinning motion of colloids or the development of acoustic-based quantum simulations. Overall, the device fabrication requires ~12 h, the experimental setup of the acoustic tweezers requires 1-2 h and the cell manipulation experiment requires ~30 min to complete. Our protocol is suitable for use by interdisciplinary researchers in biology, medicine, engineering and physics.

A solution to the biophysical fractionation of extracellular vesicles: Acoustic Nanoscale Separation via Wave-pillar Excitation Resonance (ANSWER)

High-precision isolation of small extracellular vesicles (sEVs) from biofluids is essential toward developing next-generation liquid biopsies and regenerative therapies. However, current methods of sEV separation require specialized equipment and time-consuming protocols and have difficulties producing highly pure subpopulations of sEVs. Here, we present Acoustic Nanoscale Separation via Wave-pillar Excitation Resonance (ANSWER), which allows single-step, rapid (<10 min), high-purity (>96% small exosomes, >80% exomeres) fractionation of sEV subpopulations from biofluids without the need for any sample preprocessing. Particles are iteratively deflected in a size-selective manner via an excitation resonance. This previously unidentified phenomenon generates patterns of virtual, tunable, pillar-like acoustic field in a fluid using surface acoustic waves. Highly precise sEV fractionation without the need for sample preprocessing or complex nanofabrication methods has been demonstrated using ANSWER, showing potential as a powerful tool that will enable more in-depth studies into the complexity, heterogeneity, and functionality of sEV subpopulations.

Phase 2 of extracellular RNA communication consortium charts next-generation approaches for extracellular RNA research

The extracellular RNA communication consortium (ERCC) is an NIH-funded program aiming to promote the development of new technologies, resources, and knowledge about exRNAs and their carriers. After Phase 1 (2013-2018), Phase 2 of the program (ERCC2, 2019-2023) aims to fill critical gaps in knowledge and technology to enable rigorous and reproducible methods for separation and characterization of both bulk populations of exRNA carriers and single EVs. ERCC2 investigators are also developing new bioinformatic pipelines to promote data integration through the exRNA atlas database. ERCC2 has established several Working Groups (Resource Sharing, Reagent Development, Data Analysis and Coordination, Technology Development, nomenclature, and Scientific Outreach) to promote collaboration between ERCC2 members and the broader scientific community. We expect that ERCC2's current and future achievements will significantly improve our understanding of exRNA biology and the development of accurate and efficient exRNA-based diagnostic, prognostic, and theranostic biomarker assays.

Harmonic acoustics for dynamic and selective particle manipulation

Precise and selective manipulation of colloids and biological cells has long been motivated by applications in materials science, physics and the life sciences. Here we introduce our harmonic acoustics for a non-contact, dynamic, selective (HANDS) particle manipulation platform, which enables the reversible assembly of colloidal crystals or cells via the modulation of acoustic trapping positions with subwavelength resolution. We compose Fourier-synthesized harmonic waves to create soft acoustic lattices and colloidal crystals without using surface treatment or modifying their material properties. We have achieved active control of the lattice constant to dynamically modulate the interparticle distance in a high-throughput (>100 pairs), precise, selective and reversible manner. Furthermore, we apply this HANDS platform to quantify the intercellular adhesion forces among various cancer cell lines. Our biocompatible HANDS platform provides a highly versatile particle manipulation method that can handle soft matter and measure the interaction forces between living cells with high sensitivity.

Acoustoelectronic nanotweezers enable dynamic and large-scale control of nanomaterials

The ability to precisely manipulate nano-objects on a large scale can enable the fabrication of materials and devices with tunable optical, electromagnetic, and mechanical properties. However, the dynamic, parallel manipulation of nanoscale colloids and materials remains a significant challenge. Here, we demonstrate acoustoelectronic nanotweezers, which combine the precision and robustness afforded by electronic tweezers with versatility and large-field dynamic control granted by acoustic tweezing techniques, to enable the massively parallel manipulation of sub-100 nm objects with excellent versatility and controllability. Using this approach, we demonstrated the complex patterning of various nanoparticles (e.g., DNAs, exosomes, ~3 nm graphene flakes, ~6 nm quantum dots, ~3.5 nm proteins, and ~1.4 nm dextran), fabricated macroscopic materials with nano-textures, and performed high-resolution, single nanoparticle manipulation. Various nanomanipulation functions, including transportation, concentration, orientation, pattern-overlaying, and sorting, have also been achieved using a simple device configuration. Altogether, acoustoelectronic nanotweezers overcome existing limitations in nano-manipulation and hold great potential for a variety of applications in the fields of electronics, optics, condensed matter physics, metamaterials, and biomedicine.

Precise and dynamic manipulation of nano-objects on a large scale has been challenging. Here, the authors introduce acoustoelectronic nanotweezers, combining precision of electronic tweezers with large-field dynamic control of acoustic tweezers, demonstrating complex patterning of sub-100 nm objects.

Acoustofluidic rotational tweezing enables high-speed contactless morphological phenotyping of zebrafish larvae

Modern biomedical research and preclinical pharmaceutical development rely heavily on the phenotyping of small vertebrate models for various diseases prior to human testing. In this article, we demonstrate an acoustofluidic rotational tweezing platform that enables contactless, high-speed, 3D multispectral imaging and digital reconstruction of zebrafish larvae for quantitative phenotypic analysis. The acoustic-induced polarized vortex streaming achieves contactless and rapid (~1 s/rotation) rotation of zebrafish larvae. This enables multispectral imaging of the zebrafish body and internal organs from different viewing perspectives. Moreover, we develop a 3D reconstruction pipeline that yields accurate 3D models based on the multi-view images for quantitative evaluation of basic morphological characteristics and advanced combinations of metrics. With its contactless nature and advantages in speed and automation, our acoustofluidic rotational tweezing system has the potential to be a valuable asset in numerous fields, especially for developmental biology, small molecule screening in biochemistry, and pre-clinical drug development in pharmacology.

Acoustofluidic centrifuge for nanoparticle enrichment and separation

Liquid droplets have been studied for decades and have recently experienced renewed attention as a simplified model for numerous fascinating physical phenomena occurring on size scales from the cell nucleus to stellar black holes. Here, we present an acoustofluidic centrifugation technique that leverages an entanglement of acoustic wave actuation and the spin of a fluidic droplet to enable nanoparticle enrichment and separation. By combining acoustic streaming and droplet spinning, rapid (<1 min) nanoparticle concentration and size-based separation are achieved with a resolution sufficient to identify and isolate exosome subpopulations. The underlying physical mechanisms have been characterized both numerically and experimentally, and the ability to process biological samples (including DNA segments and exosome subpopulations) has been successfully demonstrated. Together, this acoustofluidic centrifuge overcomes existing limitations in the manipulation of nanoscale (<100 nm) bioparticles and can be valuable for various applications in the fields of biology, chemistry, engineering, material science, and medicine.

Acoustohydrodynamic tweezers via spatial arrangement of streaming vortices

Acoustics-based tweezers provide a unique toolset for contactless, label-free, and precise manipulation of bioparticles and bioanalytes. Most acoustic tweezers rely on acoustic radiation forces; however, the accompanying acoustic streaming often generates unpredictable effects due to its nonlinear nature and high sensitivity to the three-dimensional boundary conditions. Here, we demonstrate acoustohydrodynamic tweezers, which generate stable, symmetric pairs of vortices to create hydrodynamic traps for object manipulation. These stable vortices enable predictable control of a flow field, which translates into controlled motion of droplets or particles on the operating surface. We built a programmable droplet-handling platform to demonstrate the basic functions of planar-omnidirectional droplet transport, merging droplets, and in situ mixing via a sequential cascade of biochemical reactions. Our acoustohydrodynamic tweezers enables improved control of acoustic streaming and demonstrates a previously unidentified method for contact-free manipulation of bioanalytes and digitalized liquid handling based on a compact and scalable functional unit.

Acoustofluidic separation enables early diagnosis of traumatic brain injury based on circulating exosomes

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a global cause of morbidity and mortality. Initial management and risk stratification of patients with TBI is made difficult by the relative insensitivity of screening radiographic studies as well as by the absence of a widely available, noninvasive diagnostic biomarker. In particular, a blood-based biomarker assay could provide a quick and minimally invasive process to stratify risk and guide early management strategies in patients with mild TBI (mTBI). Analysis of circulating exosomes allows the potential for rapid and specific identification of tissue injury. By applying acoustofluidic exosome separation-which uses a combination of microfluidics and acoustics to separate bioparticles based on differences in size and acoustic properties-we successfully isolated exosomes from plasma samples obtained from mice after TBI. Acoustofluidic isolation eliminated interference from other blood components, making it possible to detect exosomal biomarkers for TBI via flow cytometry. Flow cytometry analysis indicated that exosomal biomarkers for TBI increase in the first 24 h following head trauma, indicating the potential of using circulating exosomes for the rapid diagnosis of TBI. Elevated levels of TBI biomarkers were only detected in the samples separated via acoustofluidics; no changes were observed in the analysis of the raw plasma sample. This finding demonstrated the necessity of sample purification prior to exosomal biomarker analysis. Since acoustofluidic exosome separation can easily be integrated with downstream analysis methods, it shows great potential for improving early diagnosis and treatment decisions associated with TBI.

Microfluidic Isolation and Enrichment of Nanoparticles

Over the past decades, nanoparticles have increased in implementation to a variety of applications ranging from high-efficiency electronics to targeted drug delivery. Recently, microfluidic techniques have become an important tool to isolate and enrich populations of nanoparticles with uniform properties (e.g., size, shape, charge) due to their precision, versatility, and scalability. However, due to the large number of microfluidic techniques available, it can be challenging to identify the most suitable approach for isolating or enriching a nanoparticle of interest. In this review article, we survey microfluidic methods for nanoparticle isolation and enrichment based on their underlying mechanisms, including acoustofluidics, dielectrophoresis, filtration, deterministic lateral displacement, inertial microfluidics, optofluidics, electrophoresis, and affinity-based methods. We discuss the principles, applications, advantages, and limitations of each method. We also provide comparisons with bulk methods, perspectives for future developments and commercialization, and next-generation applications in chemistry, biology, and medicine.

Acoustofluidic Holography for Micro- to Nanoscale Particle Manipulation

Acoustic-based techniques can manipulate particles in a label-free, contact-free, and biocompatible manner. However, most previous work in acoustic manipulation has been constrained by axisymmetric patterns of pressure nodes and antinodes. Acoustic holography is an emerging technique that offers the potential to generate arbitrary pressure distributions which can be applied to particle manipulation with higher degrees of freedom. However, since current acoustic holography techniques rely on acoustic radiation forces, which decrease dramatically when the target particle size decreases, they have difficulty manipulating particles in the micro/nanoscale. Here, we introduce a holography technique that leverages both an arbitrary acoustic field and controllable fluid motion to offer an effective approach for manipulating micro/nano particles. Our approach, termed acoustofluidic holography (AFH), can manipulate a variety of materials, including cells, polymers, and metals, across sizes ranging from hundreds of micrometers to tens of nanometers.

Correction: An acoustofluidic device for efficient mixing over a wide range of flow rates

Correction for 'An acoustofluidic device for efficient mixing over a wide range of flow rates' by Hunter Bachman et al., Lab Chip, 2020, 20, 1238-1248, DOI: .

Acoustofluidic Scanning Nanoscope with High Resolution and Large Field of View

Optical imaging with nanoscale resolution and a large field of view is highly desirable in many research areas. Unfortunately, it is challenging to achieve these two features simultaneously while using a conventional microscope. An objective lens with a low numerical aperture (NA) has a large field of view but poor resolution. In contrast, a high NA objective lens will have a higher resolution but reduced field of view. In an effort to close the gap between these trade-offs, we introduce an acoustofluidic scanning nanoscope (AS-nanoscope) that can simultaneously achieve high resolution with a large field of view. The AS-nanoscope relies on acoustofluidic-assisted scanning of multiple microsized particles. A scanned 2D image is then compiled by processing the microparticle images using an automated big-data image algorithm. The AS-nanoscope has the potential to be integrated into a conventional microscope or could serve as a stand-alone instrument for a wide range of applications where both high resolution and large field of view are required.

Acoustofluidics-Assisted Engineering of Multifunctional Three-Dimensional Zinc Oxide Nanoarrays

The integration of acoustics and microfluidics (termed acoustofluidics) presents a frontier in the engineering of functional micro-/nanomaterials. Acoustofluidic techniques enable active and precise spatiotemporal control of matter, providing great potential for the design of advanced nanosystems with tunable material properties. In this work, we introduce an acoustofluidic approach for engineering multifunctional three-dimensional nanostructure arrays and demonstrate their potential in enrichment and biosensing applications. In particular, our acoustofluidic device integrates an acoustic transducer with a sharp-edge-based acoustofluidic reactor that enables uniform patterning of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoarrays with customizable lengths, densities, diameters, and other properties. The resulting ZnO nanoarray-coated glass capillaries can rapidly and efficiently capture and enrich biomolecules with sizes ranging from a few nanometers to several hundred nanometers. In order to enable the detection of these biomolecules, silver (Ag) nanoparticles are deposited onto the ZnO nanoarrays, and the integrated ZnO-Ag capillary device functions as a label-free plasmonic biosensing system for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) based detection of exosomes, DNA oligonucleotides, and E. coli bacteria. The optical sensing enhancement of ZnO-Ag capillary is further validated through finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulations. These findings not only provide insights into the engineering of functional micro/nanomaterials using acoustofluidics but also shed light onto the development of portable microanalytical devices for point-of-care applications.

Low-frequency flexural wave based microparticle manipulation

Manipulation of microparticles and bio-samples is a critical task in many research and clinical settings. Recently, acoustic based methods have garnered significant attention due to their relatively simple designs, and biocompatible and precise manipulation of small objects. Herein, we introduce a flexural wave based acoustofluidic manipulation platform that utilizes low-frequency (4-6 kHz) commercial buzzers to achieve dynamic particle concentration and translation in an open fluid well. The device has two primary modes of functionality, wherein particles can be concentrated in pressure nodes that are present on the bottom surface of the device, or particles can be trapped and manipulated in streaming vortices within the fluid domain; both of these functions result from flexural mode vibrations that travel from the transducers throughout the device. Throughout our research, we numerically and experimentally explored the wave patterns generated within the device, investigated the particle concentration phenomenon, and utilized a phase difference between the two transducers to achieve precision movement of fluid vortices and the entrapped particle clusters. With its simple, low-cost nature and open fluidic chamber design, this platform can be useful in many biological, biochemical, and biomedical applications, such as tumor spheroid generation and culture, as well as the manipulation of embryos.

An acoustofluidic device for efficient mixing over a wide range of flow rates

Whether reagents and samples need to be combined to achieve a desired reaction, or precise concentrations of solutions need to be mixed and delivered downstream, thorough mixing remains a critical step in many microfluidics-based biological and chemical assays and analyses. To achieve complete mixing of fluids in microfluidic devices, researchers have utilized novel channel designs or active intervention to facilitate mass transport and exchange of fluids. However, many of these solutions have a major limitation: their design inherently limits their operational throughput; that is, different designs work at specific flow rates, whether that be low or high ranges, but have difficulties outside of their tailored design regimes. In this work, we present an acoustofluidic mixer that is capable of achieving efficient, thorough mixing across a broad range of flow rates (20-2000 μL min-1) using a single device. Our mixer combines active acoustofluidic mixing, which is responsible for mixing fluids at lower flow rates, with passive hydrodynamic mixing, which accounts for mixing fluids at higher flow rates. The mechanism, functionality, and performance of our acoustofluidic device are both numerically and experimentally validated. Additionally, the real-world potential of our device is demonstrated by synthesizing polymeric nanoparticles with comparable sizes over a two-order-of-magnitude wide range of flow rates. This device can be valuable in many biochemical, biological, and biomedical applications. For example, using our platform, one may synthesize nanoparticles/nanomaterials at lower flow rates to first identify optimal synthesis conditions without having to waste significant amounts of reagents, and then increase the flow rate to perform high-throughput synthesis using the optimal conditions, all using the same single device and maintaining performance.

Acoustofluidic Salivary Exosome Isolation: A Liquid Biopsy Compatible Approach for Human Papillomavirus-Associated Oropharyngeal Cancer Detection

Previous efforts to evaluate the detection of human papilloma viral (HPV) DNA in whole saliva as a diagnostic measure for HPV-associated oropharyngeal cancer (HPV-OPC) have not shown sufficient clinical performance. We hypothesize that salivary exosomes are packaged with HPV-associated biomarkers, and efficient enrichment of salivary exosomes through isolation can enhance diagnostic and prognostic performance for HPV-OPC. In this study, an acoustofluidic (the fusion of acoustics and microfluidics) platform was developed to perform size-based isolation of salivary exosomes. These data showed that this platform is capable of consistently isolating exosomes from saliva samples, regardless of viscosity variation and collection method. Compared with the current gold standard, differential centrifugation, droplet digital RT-PCR analysis showed that the average yield of salivary exosomal small RNA from the acoustofluidic platform is 15 times higher. With this high-yield exosome isolation platform, we show that HPV16 DNA could be detected in isolated exosomes from the saliva of HPV-associated OPC patients at 80% concordance with tissues/biopsies positive for HPV16. Overall, these data demonstrated that the acoustofluidic platform can achieve high-purity and high-yield salivary exosome isolation for downstream salivary exosome-based liquid biopsy applications. Additionally, HPV16 DNA sequences in HPV-OPC patients are packaged in salivary exosomes and their isolation will enhance the detection of HPV16 DNA.

Open source acoustofluidics

Over the past several decades, a litany of acoustofluidic devices have been developed which purport to have significant advantages over traditional benchtop analytical tools. These acoustofluidic devices are frequently labeled as "labs-on-chips"; however, many do an insufficient job of limiting their dependence on the lab. Often, acoustofluidic devices still require skilled operators and complex external equipment. In an effort to address these shortcomings, we developed a low-cost, expandable, and multifunctional system for controlling acoustofluidic devices in the audible to low ultrasonic frequency range (31 Hz to 65 kHz). The system was designed around the readily available Arduino prototyping platform because of its user-friendly coding environment and expansive network of open source material; these factors enabled us to create a system capable of generating high voltage oscillatory signals and controlling microscale flows in acoustofluidic devices. Utilizing the established open source system, we achieved a series of acoustofluidic applications involving the manipulation of fluids and biological objects in a portable fashion. In particular, we used our open source acoustofluidic devices to achieve active rotation of cells and microorganisms, and operation of an acoustofluidic mixing device which has previously shown potential for viscous sample preparation, in a portable fashion. Additionally, using low frequency flexural waves and our portable system, we achieved acoustofluidic separation of particles based on size. It is our hope that the open source platform presented here can pave the way for future acoustofluidic devices to be used at the point-of-care, as well as simplify the operation of these devices to enable resource limited users to leverage the benefits of acoustofluidics in their work.

Acoustofluidic separation of cells and particles

Acoustofluidics, the integration of acoustics and microfluidics, is a rapidly growing research field that is addressing challenges in biology, medicine, chemistry, engineering, and physics. In particular, acoustofluidic separation of biological targets from complex fluids has proven to be a powerful tool due to the label-free, biocompatible, and contact-free nature of the technology. By carefully designing and tuning the applied acoustic field, cells and other bioparticles can be isolated with high yield, purity, and biocompatibility. Recent advances in acoustofluidics, such as the development of automated, point-of-care devices for isolating sub-micron bioparticles, address many of the limitations of conventional separation tools. More importantly, advances in the research lab are quickly being adopted to solve clinical problems. In this review article, we discuss working principles of acoustofluidic separation, compare different approaches of acoustofluidic separation, and provide a synopsis of how it is being applied in both traditional applications, such as blood component separation, cell washing, and fluorescence activated cell sorting, as well as emerging applications, including circulating tumor cell and exosome isolation.

Acoustic Separation of Nanoparticles in Continuous Flow

The separation of nanoscale particles based on their differences in size is an essential technique to the nanoscience and nanotechnology community. Here, nanoparticles are successfully separated in a continuous flow by using tilted-angle standing surface acoustic waves. The acoustic field deflects nanoparticles based on volume, and the fractionation of nanoparticles is optimized by tuning the cutoff parameters. The continuous separation of nanoparticlesis demonstrated with a ≈90% recovery rate. The acoustic nanoparticle separation method is versatile, non-invasive, and simple.

Experimental and numerical studies on standing surface acoustic wave microfluidics

Standing surface acoustic waves (SSAW) are commonly used in microfluidics to manipulate cells and other micro/nano particles. However, except for a simple one-dimensional (1D) harmonic standing waves (HSW) model, a practical model that can predict particle behaviour in SSAW microfluidics is still lacking. Herein, we established a two-dimensional (2D) SSAW microfluidic model based on the basic theory in acoustophoresis and our previous modelling strategy to predict the acoustophoresis of microparticles in SSAW microfluidics. This 2D SSAW microfluidic model considers the effects of boundary vibrations, channel materials, and channel dimensions on the acoustic propagation; as an experimental validation, the acoustophoresis of microparticles under continuous flow through narrow channels made of PDMS and silicon was studied. The experimentally observed motion of the microparticles matched well with the numerical predictions, while the 1D HSW model failed to predict many of the experimental observations. Particularly, the 1D HSW model cannot account for particle aggregation on the sidewall in PDMS channels, which is well explained by our 2D SSAW microfluidic model. Our model can be used for device design and optimization in SSAW microfluidics.

A high-throughput acoustic cell sorter

Acoustic-based fluorescence activated cell sorters (FACS) have drawn increased attention in recent years due to their versatility, high biocompatibility, high controllability, and simple design. However, the sorting throughput for existing acoustic cell sorters is far from optimum for practical applications. Here we report a high-throughput cell sorting method based on standing surface acoustic waves (SSAWs). We utilized a pair of focused interdigital transducers (FIDTs) to generate SSAW with high resolution and high energy efficiency. As a result, the sorting throughput is improved significantly from conventional acoustic-based cell sorting methods. We demonstrated the successful sorting of 10 μm polystyrene particles with a minimum actuation time of 72 μs, which translates to a potential sorting rate of more than 13,800 events per second. Without using a cell-detection unit, we were able to demonstrate an actual sorting throughput of 3300 events per second. Our sorting method can be conveniently integrated with upstream detection units, and it represents an important development towards a functional acoustic-based FACS system.

Plasmofluidics: Merging Light and Fluids at the Micro-/Nanoscale

Plasmofluidics is the synergistic integration of plasmonics and micro/nanofluidics in devices and applications in order to enhance performance. There has been significant progress in the emerging field of plasmofluidics in recent years. By utilizing the capability of plasmonics to manipulate light at the nanoscale, combined with the unique optical properties of fluids and precise manipulation via micro/nanofluidics, plasmofluidic technologies enable innovations in lab-on-a-chip systems, reconfigurable photonic devices, optical sensing, imaging, and spectroscopy. In this review article, the most recent advances in plasmofluidics are examined and categorized into plasmon-enhanced functionalities in microfluidics and microfluidics-enhanced plasmonic devices. The former focuses on plasmonic manipulations of fluids, bubbles, particles, biological cells, and molecules at the micro/nanoscale. The latter includes technological advances that apply microfluidic principles to enable reconfigurable plasmonic devices and performance-enhanced plasmonic sensors. The article is concluded with perspectives on the upcoming challenges, opportunities, and possible future directions of the emerging field of plasmofluidics.

A reliable and programmable acoustofluidic pump powered by oscillating sharp-edge structures

We present a programmable acoustofluidic pump that utilizes the acoustic streaming effects generated by the oscillation of tilted sharp-edge structures. This sharp-edge-based acoustofluidic pump is capable of generating stable flow rates as high as 8 μL min(-1) (~76 Pa of pumping pressure), and it can tune flow rates across a wide range (nanoliters to microliters per minute). Along with its ability to reliably produce stable and tunable flow rates, the acoustofluidic pump is easy to operate and requires minimum hardware, showing great potential for a variety of applications.

Theory and experiment on particle trapping and manipulation via optothermally generated bubbles

We present a theoretical analysis and experimental demonstration of particle trapping and manipulation around optothermally generated bubbles. We show that a particle located within 500 μm of a surface bubble can be attracted towards a bubble by drag force resulting from a convective flow. Once the particle comes in contact with the bubble's surface, a balance between surface tension forces and pressure forces traps the particle on the bubble surface, allowing the particle to move with the bubble without detaching. The proposed mechanism is confirmed by computational fluid dynamics simulations, force calculations, and experiments. Based on this mechanism, we experimentally demonstrated a novel approach for manipulating microparticles via optothermally generated bubbles. Using this approach, randomly distributed microparticles were effectively collected and carried to predefined locations. Single particles were also manipulated along prescribed trajectories. This bubble-based particle trapping and manipulation technique can be useful in applications such as micro assembly, particle concentration, and high-precision particle separation.

Sub-micrometer-precision, three-dimensional (3D) hydrodynamic focusing via "microfluidic drifting"

In this article, we demonstrate single-layered, "microfluidic drifting" based three-dimensional (3D) hydrodynamic focusing devices with particle/cell focal positioning approaching submicron precision along both lateral and vertical directions. By systematically optimizing channel geometries and sample/sheath flow rates, a series of "microfluidic drifting" based 3D hydrodynamic focusing devices with different curvature angles are designed and fabricated. Their performances are then evaluated using confocal microscopy, fast camera imaging, and side-view imaging techniques. Using a device with a curvature angle of 180°, we have achieved a standard deviation of ±0.45 μm in particle focal position and a coefficient of variation (CV) of 2.37% in flow cytometric measurements. To the best of our knowledge, this is the best CV that has been achieved using a microfluidic flow cytometry device. Moreover, the device showed the capability to distinguish 8 peaks when subjected to a stringent 8-peak rainbow calibration test, signifying the ability to perform sensitive, accurate tests similar to commercial flow cytometers. We have further tested and validated our device by detection of HEK-293 cells. With its advantages in simple fabrication (i.e., single-layered device), precise 3D hydrodynamic focusing (i.e., submicrometer precision along both lateral and vertical directions), and high detection resolution (i.e., low CV), our method could serve as an important basis for high-performance, mass-producible microfluidic flow cytometry.

An acoustofluidic micromixer based on oscillating sidewall sharp-edges

Rapid and homogeneous mixing inside a microfluidic channel is demonstrated via the acoustic streaming phenomenon induced by the oscillation of sidewall sharp-edges. By optimizing the design of the sharp-edges, excellent mixing performance and fast mixing speed can be achieved in a simple device, making our sharp-edge-based acoustic micromixer a promising candidate for a wide variety of applications.

Optoacoustic tweezers: a programmable, localized cell concentrator based on opto-thermally generated, acoustically activated, surface bubbles

We present a programmable, biocompatible technique for dynamically concentrating and patterning particles and cells in a microfluidic device. Since our technique utilizes opto-thermally generated, acoustically activated, surface bubbles, we name it "optoacoustic tweezers". The optoacoustic tweezers are capable of concentrating particles/cells at any prescribed locations in a microfluidic chamber without the use of permanent structures, rendering it particularly useful for the formation of flexible, complex cell patterns. Additionally, this technique has demonstrated excellent biocompatibility and can be conveniently integrated with other microfluidic units. In our experiments, micro-bubbles were generated by focusing a 405 nm diode laser onto a gold-coated glass chamber. By properly tuning the laser, we demonstrate precise control over the position and size of the generated bubbles. Acoustic waves were then applied to activate the surface bubbles, causing them to oscillate at an optimized frequency. The resulting acoustic radiation force allowed us to locally trap particles/cells, including 15 μm polystyrene beads and HeLa cells, around each bubble. Cell-adhesion tests were also conducted after cell concentrating to confirm the biocompatibility of this technique.