Patent ID: 6908737

Claim:
A system for conducting a multiplexed experiment comprising a mixture of microcarriers including multiple classes of microcarriers, each microcarriers having a code, at least one flat viewing surface and a shape that self-orients the viewing surface to face a viewing direction, a first class of microcarriers in the mixture, each microcarriers in the first class having a first code configuration characterized by a first optically distinguishable combination of colored spatial indicia formed from a flat ribbon of parallel-fused glass fibers including at least one transparent fiber, a second class of microcarriers in the mixture, each microcarrier in the second class having a second code configuration characterized by a second optically distinguishable combination of colored spatial indicia formed from a flat ribbon of parallel-fused glass fibers including at least one transparent fiber, and biological cells attached to at least some of the microcarriers, wherein the code on a microcarriers identifies a characteristic of a cell carried by the microcarriers.