The latest advances on nonlinear insulator-based electrokinetic microsystems under direct current and low-frequency alternating current fields: a review
- 19 October 2021
- journal article
- review article
- Published by Springer Science and Business Media LLC in Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry
- Vol. 414 (2), 885-905
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-021-03687-9
Abstract
This review article presents an overview of the evolution of the field of insulator-based dielectrophoresis (iDEP); in particular, it focuses on insulator-based electrokinetic (iEK) systems stimulated with direct current and low-frequency(< 1 kHz) AC electric fields. The article covers the surge of iDEP as a research field where many different device designs were developed, from microchannels with arrays of insulating posts to devices with curved walls and nano- and micropipettes. All of these systems allowed for the manipulation and separation of a wide array of particles, ranging from macromolecules to microorganisms, including clinical and biomedical applications. Recent experimental reports, supported by important theoretical studies in the field of physics and colloids, brought attention to the effects of electrophoresis of the second kind in these systems. These recent findings suggest that DEP is not the main force behind particle trapping, as it was believed for the last two decades. This new research suggests that particle trapping, under DC and low-frequency AC potentials, mainly results from a balance between electroosmotic and electrophoretic effects (linear and nonlinear); although DEP is present in these systems, it is not a dominant force. Considering these recent studies, it is proposed to rename this field from DC-iDEP to DC-iEK (and low-frequency AC-iDEP to low-frequency AC-iEK). Whereas much research is still needed, this is an exciting time in the field of microscale EK systems, as these new findings seem to explain the challenges with modeling particle migration and trapping in iEK devices, and provide perhaps a better understanding of the mechanisms behind particle trapping.Keywords
Funding Information
- National Science Foundation (CBET- 1705895)
This publication has 173 references indexed in Scilit:
- Dielectrophoresis-Based Discrimination of Bacteria at the Strain Level Based on Their Surface PropertiesPLOS ONE, 2013
- Dielectrophoretic mobility determination in DC insulator‐based dielectrophoresisElectrophoresis, 2011
- Immunoglobulin G and bovine serum albumin streaming dielectrophoresis in a microfluidic deviceElectrophoresis, 2011
- Curvature-induced dielectrophoresis for continuous separation of particles by charge in spiral microchannelsBiomicrofluidics, 2011
- Dielectrophoresis of Caenorhabditis elegansLab on a Chip, 2011
- Review Article—Dielectrophoresis: Status of the theory, technology, and applicationsBiomicrofluidics, 2010
- Dielectrophoretic cell trapping and parallel one-to-one fusion based on field constriction created by a micro-orifice arrayBiomicrofluidics, 2010
- Electrokinetic focusing and filtration of cells in a serpentine microchannelBiomicrofluidics, 2009
- An insulator-based (electrodeless) dielectrophoretic concentrator for microbes in waterJournal of Microbiological Methods, 2005
- Electroosmosis of the second kindColloids and Surfaces A: Physicochemical and Engineering Aspects, 1995