Laminar Flows: Microfluidics and Applications

This lecture covers the concept of laminar flows in microfluidic devices, where the flow is steady and easy to compute due to low Reynolds numbers. It discusses the advantages of laminar flows, such as stable flow without turbulence and mixing by diffusion. The lecture also explores flow profiles in circular and rectangular channels, combinations of laminar flows for hydrodynamic focusing, and the use of laminar flow for bioprinting and selective cell lysis in microfluidics. Additionally, it delves into the application of hydrodynamic focusing in fluorescence-assisted flow cell sorting (FACS) for analyzing and sorting cell populations.