Parallel particle identification and separation for active optical sorting

An instrument for rapidly and non-invasively sorting different cell specimens is a valuable tool in biological and medical research. Parallel identification of target specimens through image analysis can sort based on highly tuneable selection criteria and can enable high-speed optical sorting when matched with a rapidly reconfigurable optical sorting field. We demonstrate the potential of such a system using colloidal polystyrene microspheres. By combining machine vision with a parallel add-on optical manipulation scheme, we were able to move identified particles over a distance of several hundred micrometres at velocities that exceed 800 mu m s(-1) and are easily scalable to higher velocities.