Dielectrophoresis (DEP) is a powerful label-free technique that enables the characterization and separation of cells based on their physical and intrinsic electrical properties, such as size, membrane/cytoplasmic conductivity and permittivity. In this project we aim to develop an integrated microfluidic chip for acquiring dielectrophoretic spectrum of cancer cells which allows to compute the cell electrical properties.
The project will involve the design and fabrication of interdigitated co-planar micro electrodes on glass and recording of experimental data on living cells. The electrodes will be fabricated in a clean-room environment using gold, with an option of indium tin oxide (ITO) for transparent electrode configurations. These electrodes will be integrated with PDMS/PMMA based microfluidic channels to hold the cell suspension over the electrodes.
The student will design the electrode geometry (in Clewin) optimized for DEP spectra acquisition and fabricate the electrodes using standard photo lithography and metal deposition techniques. The PDMS microfluidic channels will be aligned and bonded to the electrode substrate to form a lab-on-chip device. Cell suspensions will be introduced into microfluidic channels, and frequency-dependent DEP responses will be measured under applied AC electric fields (~20 experimental points) and the data will be processed using OpenDEP. The electrical properties of different cell types resembling biological significance (such as cancerous and non-cancerous cells), will be quantified and compared for the characteristic electrical differences.
Expected Outcomes
Fabricate a functional microfluidic DEP chip for cell electrical characterization.
Experimental DEP spectra acquisition of different cell types.
Quantitative comparison of electrical properties between cells.
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