Patent ID: 8702946

Claim:
A method of assaying or processing an analyte in a fluid sample, comprising flowing the fluid sample through a microchannel having a first section, a second section, and a third section which is in fluidic communication with the first section, said first section is defined by a polyetheretherketone thermoplastic housing, wherein the first section comprises a plurality of randomly arranged perturber bodies packed therein, a first liquid permeable membrane which separates the first section and the second section and immobilizes the plurality of randomly arranged perturber bodies in the first section, and a second liquid permeable membrane which separates the first section and the third section, wherein the second section and the third section are formed of fused silica capillaries; supplying the fluid from the third section to the first section; applying a first mobility flow field which is an electrokinetic flow field and a second mobility flow field which is a dielectrophoretic flow field to the fluid sample within the channel, wherein the second mobility flow field interacts with the plurality of randomly arranged perturber bodies to produce at least one field non-uniformity proximate to at least one of the perturber bodies, wherein the at least one field non-uniformity operates to trap and concentrate the analyte within the first section of the channel comprising the plurality of perturber bodies; removing the second mobility flow field thereby releasing the trapped analyte into the second section; and assaying or processing the analyte.