(5w) Optically Integrated Microfluidic Tools

Optical processing is a powerful technique that possesses great potential for microfluidic point-of-care (POC) diagnostic technologies. In addition to microscale flow cytometry, advanced optics have also allowed for the realization of microfluidic cell sorting by optical manipulation. Conventional optics, however, are far too bulky and cumbersome to allow these techniques to be adapted to portable formats. Through the use of unconventional optics, we have overcome these traditional limitations and have created a class of microfluidic tools that can be combined into a single, versatile platform for POC testing. This platform is facilitated by several complementary technologies. Primarily, new techniques using femtosecond pulsed lasers have been developed for the simultaneous creation and visualization of micromachined structures within microfluidic channels. This fabrication approach has enabled the creation of complex optical networks within bulk materials. These waveguiding structures have been in turn combined with new optical trapping methods that overcome previous scaling limitations in microfluidics. The successful integration of micromachined optical waveguiding structures and optical trapping has facilitated a truly practical portable fluorescent activated cell sorting platform. These tools have been successfully applied to whole blood cytometry, coagulation analysis, and cell sorting.