Dielectrophoresis is both a physical phenomenon (of induced force in a suspended micro- or nano-scale object such as a cell, bacterium, virus or protein) and also a technique by which such particles can be studied, characterized and separated.

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First observed in the 1920s and described mathematically in the 1950s, dielectrophoresis (commonly abbreviated DEP) took off in the late 1980s with the advent of microfabrication technology.   

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There are two things at which DEP excels - cytometry and cell sorting.  By applying forces at different frequencies, it is possible to determine the electrical properties of cells; where these are different, differences can be exploited to sort them at unprecedented rated. 

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 This site serves as an introduction to DEP theory and applications,  as well as to services which the Network can provide for developing cell separation and cytometry solutions for your appliction.