Patent ID: 8795497

Claim:
A cell sorter comprising: a measuring electrode provided in a flow path having branch paths adapted to sort cells and through which a fluid including the cells flows, the measuring electrode provided upstream from the branch paths, the measuring electrode operable to form a measuring electric field in the flow path to measure a complex dielectric constant of each of the cells flowing through the flow path; a working electrode provided downstream from the measuring electrode and upstream from the branch paths, the working electrode including a plurality of separate electrode groups each including a first electrode and a opposed second electrode that form separate working electrode pairs, each working electrode pair operable to form, in the flow path, a separate working electric field to sort the cells by imparting a dielectrophoretic force to the cells and using the flow path; an electric field application section configured to individually apply voltages to the working electrode pairs such that the working electrode pairs individually control the separate working electric fields; a plurality of detection electrode pairs, each detection electrode pair provided downstream from the measuring electrode and upstream from the branch paths, each of the detection electrode pairs corresponds to a different one of the separate electrode groups and positioned upstream and in proximity to the respective electrode group to detect the presence of the cell in the fluid flowing through the flow path; and an output section operable to acquire sorting signals based on information about the measured complex dielectric constants and detection signals indicating the detection of the one or more cells by the respective detection electrode pairs, the output section operable to output working signals adapted to form the working electric field in the respective working electrode pair when the detection signals are acquired if the sorting signals are acquired, thereby permitting variable sorting control of a plurality of different cells concurrently flowing through a portion of the flow path that includes the working electrode pairs.