A Numerical Analysis of Phononic-Assisted Control of Ultrasound Waves in Acoustofluidic Device

The ability to precisely sort individual microparticles/cells/droplets in suspension is important for various chemical and biological applications such as cancer cell detection, drug screening etc. The past decade, label- free particle handling of particle suspensions by ultrasonic radiation forces and streaming has received much attention, since it relies solely on mechanical properties such as particle size and contrast in density and compressibility. We present a theoretical study of phononic-assisted control of ultrasound waves in acoustofluidic devices. We propose the use of phononic crystal diffractors, which can be introduced in acoustofluidic structures. These diffractors can be applied in the design of efficient resonant cavities, directional sound waves for new types of particle sorting methods, or acoustically controlled deterministic lateral displacement. The PnC-diffractor-based devices can be made configurable, by embedding the diffractors, all working at the same excitation frequency but with different resulting diffraction patterns, in exchangeable membranes on top of the device.