Controlled particle displacement by hydrodynamic obstacle interaction in non-inertial flows

Abstract: Systematic deflection of microparticles off of initial streamlines is a fundamental task in microfluidics, aiming at applications including sorting, accumulation, or capture of the transported particles. In a large class of setups, including Deterministic Lateral Displacement and porous media filtering, particles in non-inertial (Stokes) flows are deflected by an array of obstacles. We show that net deflection of force-free particles passing an obstacle in Stokes flow is possible solely by hydrodynamic interactions if the flow and obstacle geometry break fore-aft symmetries. The net deflection is maximal for certain initial conditions and we analytically describe its scaling with particle size, obstacle shape, and flow geometry, confirmed by direct trajectory simulations. For realistic parameters, separation by particle size is comparable to what is found assuming contact (roughness) interactions. Our approach also makes systematic predictions on when short-range attractive forces lead to particle capture or sticking. In separating hydrodynamic effects on particle motion strictly from contact interactions, we provide novel, rigorous guidelines for elementary microfluidic particle manipulation and filtering.