This award is for the development of a miniaturized high-throughput Coulter counting instrument for bioassays of cells, biomolecules and bio-particles such as pollen grains. The samples will pass through multiple fluid channels of adjustable size to be measured simultaneously with a single pair of electrodes. The use of dynamic channel modulation and signal multiplexing will make it possible to acquire data from a large number of channels without individual detection electronics for each channel.
In addition to the scientific benefits of the instrument, this award will involve students in state-of-the-art microfluidic biosensors. The concept, activities, and results from this research will be incorporated into undergraduate and graduate courses as real-world examples. Students will be recruited also through the university's Undergraduate Research Program, Increasing Diversity in Engineering Academics program and Women in Engineering Program. Middle school students, including those with special learning disabilities, and their teachers will have hands-on experiences with cutting edge BioMEMS technology through summer and Saturday workshops funded by an NSF education grant. A network-based course, ?MEMS: basics & practice?, will be broadcast to the extended community through the university's Distance Learning Network. The state has lost a considerable number of manufacturing jobs to overseas manufacturers in recent years, and the investigators anticipate that this project will help to cultivate a high-tech atmosphere in the region.
