Numerical simulation on the opto-electro-kinetic patterning for rapid concentration of particles in a microchannel

This paper presents a mathematical model for laser-induced rapid electro-kinetic patterning (REP) to elucidate the mechanism for concentrating particles in a microchannel non-destructively and non-invasively. COMSOLV® (v4.2a) multiphysics software was used to examine the effect of a variety of parameters on the focusing performance of the REP. A mathematical model of the REP was developed based on the AC electrothermal flow (ACET) equations, the dielectrophoresis (DEP) equation, the energy balance equation, the Navier-Stokes equation, and the concentration-distribution equation. The medium was assumed to be a diluted solute, and different electric potentials and laser illumination were applied to the desired place. Gold (Au) electrodes were used at the top and bottom of a microchannel. For model validation, the simulation results were compared with the experimental data. The results revealed the formation of a toroidal microvortex via the ACET effect, which was generated due to laser illumination and joule-heating in the area of interest. In addition, under some conditions, such as the frequency of AC, the DEP velocity, and the particle size, the ACET force enhances and compresses resulting in the concentration of particles. The conditions of the DEP velocity and the ACET velocity are presented in detail with a comparison of the experimental results.