Scaling effects in a micromachined electrical field-flow fractionation (μ-EFFF) system with integrated detector

This work examines scaling effects in a miniaturized electrical field-flow fractionation (μ-EFFF) system with an integrated electrical detection scheme and presents a new electrical model for operation of the system. Critical parameters in the μ-EFFF system are examined including the electrical time constant, retention, plate heights, and resolution. This work is significant since it increases the theoretical understanding of EFFF, a powerful system used in the separation and analysis of colloids, emulsions, and other suspensions, and validates the theory with experiment. Biological particles testable using EFFF include proteins, DNA, liposomes, organelles, viruses, and polymers for use in biochemistry, cell biology, bioengineering, and pharmaceutics. EFFF uses an electric field perpendicular to the separation direction to separate particles based on size and charge