17. Microfluidic Micro/Nano Droplets

Microfluidic droplet technology has evolved rapidly since the first microfluidic droplet generator was reported over a decade ago. It has subsequently branched out and emerged as a practical solution to enhance the capabilities of many other fields, including, but not limited to: high-throughput screening, biosensing, drug delivery and synthetic biology. In this chapter, we will report on recent advancements in droplet microfluidic technologies that have emerged since Teh et al.'s comprehensive 2007 review. We begin with a brief history of droplet microfluidics and introduce methods of droplet production, manipulation, and sensing methodologies. The remainder of the chapter is dedicated to design considerations for various droplet production configurations, concluding with a discussion on applications, trends and the general direction that the field is headed.