Pinch-off droplet generator using microscale gigahertz acoustics.

The generation and dispensing of microdroplets is a vital process in various fields such as biomedicine, medical diagnosis and chemistry. However, most methods still require the structures of nozzles or microchannels to assist droplet generation, which leads to limitations on system flexibility and restrictions on the size range of the generated droplets. In this paper, we propose a nozzle-free acoustic-based method for generating droplets using a gigahertz (GHz) bulk acoustic wave (BAW).

100% Single Cell Encapsulation via Acoustofluidic Printing Based on a Gigahertz Acoustic Resonator.

In this study, an acoustofluidic printing system for generation of single-cell droplets based on a gigahertz acoustic resonator was proposed and verified. The working area of the resonator has a typical dimension of 10×10 micrometer which is very suitable for single cell printing. Single cells were encapsulated in picoliter droplets and printed directly to a flat substrate without any significant influence on their viability.

An on-demand femtoliter droplet dispensing system based on a gigahertz acoustic resonator.

On-demand droplet dispensing systems are indispensable tools in bioanalytical fields, such as microarray fabrication. Biomaterial solutions can be very limited and expensive, so minimizing the use of solution per spot produced is highly desirable. Here, we proposed a novel droplet dispensing method which utilizes a gigahertz (GHz) acoustic resonator to deposit well-defined droplets on-demand.