Microfluidics Core Facility Droplet-based Microfluidics

Droplet-based microfluidics is a big sub topic in microfluidics. Water-in-Oil droplets or micrometer-sized Oil-in-Water droplets can be produced on chip or by means of glass-capillary nested devices. Water-in-oil droplets are widely used to encapsulate any wanted cargo which can then be analyzed in small compartments. The droplets find applications in single cell sequencing, antibody screening, cell-cell interactions and many more because the content is restricted to the droplet size and not diluted in a bigger volume. This also allows the study of single cells without interference of surrounding cells. Another application of droplet-based microfluidics is for the production of e.g.: beads or capsules consisting of proteins and/or hydrogels. Within the µFlu CF, we prepare the microfluidic chip with the appropriate design, tailored to the project needs of the user. We further offer guidance and help in the generation process of such droplets. Further, we also generate oil-in-water droplets, which are handed to the user to be used for further experiments.