Optoelectrofluidics

Optoelectrofluidics, also known as optically induced electrohydrodynamics, refers to the study of the motions of particles or molecules and their interactions with optically-induced electric field and the surrounding fluid.

This concept includes electrothermal vortex, electrophoresis, dielectrophoresis, and electroosmosis induced by combination of optical and electrical energy or by optical-electrical energy transfer.

In 1995, an electrothermal vortices induced by a strong IR (infrared) laser projected into an electric field have been utilized to concentrate microparticles and molecules. In 2000, UV(ultraviolet) pattern projected onto ITO (indium tin oxide) electrode has been applied for patterning colloidal particles. Illumination of the ITO electrode by UV light results in a small increase in the current from the generation of electron-hole pairs at the ITO/water interface. In 2005, optoelectronic tweezers (OET), wherein a photoconductive material was utilized to induce electric field using the optical decrement of electrical resistance on a partially illuminated area, has been reported. After that, many researches in several view-points have been performed as below.