Micro particle image velocimetry measurement in an electronically active microarray

Title from first page of PDF file (viewed November 29, 2010)Includes bibliographical references (p. 51-53)DNA analysis, such as gene expression and infectious and genetic disease and cancer diagnostics, is a growing field in the biotechnology industry. The DNA microarray chip is an effective and fast way of detecting the presence of pathogens in a human liquid sample. The chip is composed of a 10x10 array of electrodes connected by traces to a voltage source. Electric fields induced among the electrodes propel the histidine-suspended DNA to quickly\ud migrate to and aggregate around an array of electrodes to hybridize, or bind, with their\ud complementary strands. In these experiments, DNA molecules are substituted with negatively-charge microspheres. The purpose of this study is to establish a method for measuring the velocity flow fields of DNA-representative microspheres within the electric fields to characterize the system performance. This will be accomplished by miniaturizing a particle image velocimetry (PIV) technique to the microfluidics technology. The PIV system will measure the velocity of the microspheres by measuring the distance traveled in a given amount of time. The flow of the microspheres has already been imaged and modeled using both experimental and finite element analysis methods. For the first time, the ??PIV technique will determine experimental velocities of charged particles in a microarray technology. This information will enable future research to compare various designs of the microarray to determine the most optimal device