US 12,031,896 B2
Method and system for impedance-based quantification and microfluidic control
Nathan Swami, Charlottesville, VA (US); Walter Varhue, Charlottesville, VA (US); and Vahid Farmehini, Charlottesville, VA (US)
Assigned to UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA PATENT FOUNDATION, Charlottesville, VA (US)
Appl. No. 17/425,414
Filed by UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA PATENT FOUNDATION, Charlottesville, VA (US)
PCT Filed Jan. 24, 2020, PCT No. PCT/US2020/014899
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Jul. 23, 2021,
PCT Pub. No. WO2020/154566, PCT Pub. Date Jul. 30, 2020.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/796,317, filed on Jan. 24, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0091014 A1, Mar. 24, 2022
Int. Cl. B01L 3/00 (2006.01); G01N 15/01 (2024.01); G01N 15/1031 (2024.01); G01N 33/483 (2006.01); G01R 27/16 (2006.01)
CPC G01N 15/1031 (2013.01) [B01L 3/502715 (2013.01); B01L 3/502761 (2013.01); G01N 33/4833 (2013.01); G01R 27/16 (2013.01); B01L 2200/0647 (2013.01); B01L 2300/0627 (2013.01); G01N 15/01 (2024.01)] 21 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method comprising:
providing a microfluidic chip, the microfluidic chip comprising a microfluidic channel with one or more electric-field-generating structures located therein, including a first electric-field-generating structure, wherein the one or more electric-field-generating structures is configured to selectively polarize or manipulate biologic or particle components flowing within the microfluidic channel; and
measuring, via an on-chip impedance sensing element, impedance spectra associated with at least one internal capacitive structure of the first electric-field-generating structure or characteristic of the biologic or particle components, and determining, via a processor or logic circuit, one or more parameters associated with the at least one internal capacitive structure, wherein the one or more parameters is selected from the group consisting of:
an associated thickness of the at least one capacitive structure;
a surface area size of the at least one internal capacitive structure;
a surface charge property of the at least one internal capacitive structure;
an architecture feature of the at least one internal capacitive structure; and
a size of a portion of microfluidic channel to which the first electric-field-generating structure is located;
wherein the measured impedance spectra is used at least for one of i) control of the polarization or manipulation of the biologic or particle components when flowing through the microfluidic channel and ii) geometric or functional quantification of the at least one internal capacitive structure or of the microfluidic chip.