AC electrokinetics: colloids and nanoparticles

Abstract

The last decade has witnessed an explosion of interest in techniques for the manipulation, characterisation and separation of particles in liquids using electric fields. In the near future we will see the emergence of highly complex micro-chips capable of rapid identification and sorting of cells and other bioparticles. Coupled with sensitive chemical and biological detectors, such chips will have a major impact in many fields, including biosensors, diagnostics, remote sensing, environmental monitoring and health care. There is growing interest in using electric fields for characterising and manipulating sub-micrometre particles, including viruses, collidal particles, proteins and DNA. This book shows how AC electric fields can be used in this new area of technology.