Grant: Research Tools and Instruments - Category 1 (<$150,000)

The desire to control and manipulate matter at all length scales has been mankind's endless endeavor. At the micro and nano-scale, the delicate nature of objects typically necessitates non-invasive manipulation. Progress in microfluidic and lab-on-chip systems has seen concurrent activity in the field of non-invasive manipulation. Several schemes of manipulation such as optical tweezers, dielectrophoresis and magnetophoresis have appeared in the last 50 years. Innovations in the last decade have resulted in the development of a whole new set of technologies that promise a paradigm shift in microfluidic non-invasive manipulation: opto-electrofluidics. In essence, opto-electrofluidics are microfluidic technologies that employ a synergistic combination of optical and electrical forces to enable non-invasive control of matter at the micro and nano length scales. This synergy bestows upon these technologies several novel features such as higher throughput along with high resolution, dynamic user-defined manipulation and higher degrees of freedom. Due to these features, opto-electrofluidics promises substantial improvements in the field of molecular and point-of-care diagnostics. Within the scope of molecular and point-of-care diagnostics, several aspects of opto-electrofluidics promise to play a relevant role. These include, but are not limited to enhanced sensor efficiency, sample preparation, purification, amplification and detection. However, opto-electrofluidics is a very nascent field and vigorous research is necessary in this domain before its potential can be fully realized. This proposal concerns the development of an experimental facility, which will focus on fundamental and applied research related to opto-electrofluidic technologies. By advancing the fundamental understanding of these technologies, we will endeavor to provide the benefits of these technologies to the biomedical community. In particular, we will carry out much needed research and development efforts in the application of opto-electrofluidics towards bio-assays. Here the goal will be to achieve higher efficiency, smaller turnaround times and high specificity in currently relevant bio-assays. This research will also be one of the first of its kind facility in Canada.