US 11,913,859 B2
Trapping and releasing particles carried by gas sample
Panu Koppinen, Espoo (FI); Teuvo Sillanpää, Espoo (FI); and Markku Ylilammi, Espoo (FI)
Assigned to Teknologian tutkimuskeskus VTT Oy, Espoo (FI)
Appl. No. 17/051,790
Filed by Teknologian tutkimuskeskus VTT Oy, Espoo (FI)
PCT Filed Apr. 15, 2019, PCT No. PCT/FI2019/050303
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Oct. 30, 2020,
PCT Pub. No. WO2019/211513, PCT Pub. Date Nov. 7, 2019.
Claims priority of application No. 20185401 (FI), filed on Apr. 30, 2018.
Prior Publication US 2021/0116332 A1, Apr. 22, 2021
Int. Cl. G01N 1/22 (2006.01); B01L 3/00 (2006.01); B01L 5/00 (2006.01); B06B 1/10 (2006.01); G01N 1/40 (2006.01); G01N 15/00 (2006.01); G01N 15/06 (2006.01); G01N 33/00 (2006.01)
CPC G01N 1/2202 (2013.01) [B01L 3/5027 (2013.01); B01L 5/00 (2013.01); B06B 1/10 (2013.01); G01N 1/4077 (2013.01); G01N 15/0656 (2013.01); G01N 33/0004 (2013.01); G01N 2001/4094 (2013.01); G01N 2015/0053 (2013.01); G01N 2015/0693 (2013.01)] 4 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method comprising:
receiving a gas sample to a volume of an on-chip fine particle sensor;
generating by a microelectromechanical, MEMS, ultrasonic transducer a standing wave to the volume, said standing wave comprising at least one particle trapping zone for trapping particles carried by the gas sample; an
releasing, by the MEMS ultrasonic transducer, particles trapped to the at least one particle trapping zone by decreasing power of the standing wave to at least one lower power level, and/or switching off, by the MEMS ultrasonic transducer, the standing wave, wherein size of the released particles is controlled by the power level of the standing wave and/or a time the at least one particle trapping zone is switched off to release plural sets of particles at different times, each set having particles of a same size range,
wherein the on-chip fine particle sensor is configured to determine a particle size distribution of the gas sample on the basis of an arrival time distribution of the released particles.