Berlin 2012 – scientific programme
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ST: Fachverband Strahlen- und Medizinphysik
ST 3: Medical Physics
ST 3.2: Talk
Tuesday, March 27, 2012, 09:50–10:10, HFT-FT 101
Flow cytometry with improved signal-to-noise discrimination building on radar technology — •Stephan Quint1,2, Christian Sommer1,2, Michael Bassler2, and Thomas Walther1 — 1TU Darmstadt, Institut für angewandte Physik, Schlossgartenstraße 7,64289 Darmstadt, Germany — 2Institut für Mikrotechnik Mainz, Carl-Zeiss-Straße 18-20, 55129 Mainz, Germany
Flow cytometry is a growing field in both research and application and enables the observation of individual cells. Conventional flow cytometers use a bright spot of focused laser light to excite single dyed cells. The cell specific fluorescence signal is recorded and gives information on the cell type. Cytometers require a sophisticated and delicate optical system restricting their use to laboratory settings.
We propose a new approach based on a microfluidic disposable chip. The key feature is a spatially widened detection zone in combination with a distinctively coded signal in the time domain for each traversing cell. The concept enables a higher signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) in comparison to conventional flow cytometers. Due to an extended time of flight, the amount of light, seen by the detector, is much increased. The modulation in time is either created by the use of spatial masks or by spatially selective readings from pixelated detectors. Lock-in-techniques, similar to those used in radar applications are applied to the signal in order to extract the cell signature, resulting in a highly specific cell detection. We can experimentally and theoretically demonstrate how this approach classes out conventional flow cytometers in respect to SNR by far.