Improvement of Microchannel Geometry Subject to Lateral Dielectrophoresis Using Numerical Simulations

Continuous particles separation device by lateral dielectrophoretic force shows a favorable promise for multiple cell population separation and purification. This paper addresses the effects of micro-channel geometry shape on the electric field distribution and the distribution of the gradient of electric field square which has a direct influence on the magnitude of the dielectrophoretic force. Before this was done, the influence of aspect ratio of micro-channel geometry was investigated first. Numerical method was adopted in this paper to study the electric field distribution and the gradient of the electric field square distribution. Results show that micro-channel geometry shape and its aspect ratio have great influence on the electric field distribution and dielectrophoresis distribution. As a result, this paper proposes novel micro-channel geometry to improve electric field distribution, further more for a better dielectrophoresis separation. The improved micro-channel can generate stronger electric field strength and larger dielectrophoretic force.