​The single cell is the fundamental building brick of life. However, the majority understanding of cellular biology and genetics has been collected through the bulk experiment from a large population of cells. Traditional methods for single-cell analysis have been limited by the cost and throughput required to pick up wanted individual cells from a large number of cells and the difficulties coupled with analyzing small amounts of starting material. To address this fundamental biological issue with increasing precision, we should study the questions through the integration of various technologies with the capability of quantification.

Microfluidic chips represent a new opportunity for performing chemical or biological experiments at the nanoliter scale with unprecedented spatial and temporal control. This approach can be used to plumb single-cell issues with several promising advantages such as scale compatibility of mammalian cells, a friendly coupling of the imaging process, flexibility of manipulating cells, and automation. Therefore, my interests mainly focus on the single-cell biological analysis in the microfluidic device which can be coupled with other methods easily, such as chromatography, 3D printing, and even with single-molecule experiments. Understanding the complex biological systems at the single-cell level is, therefore, one of the most pivotal missions in life science research.

Besides fundamental research in life sciences, we also design and fabricate practical devices for healthcare applications. The idea is to wear such a smart device directly on human epidemics, enabling non-invasive monitoring biomarkers such as glucose, chloride, lactic acid, and other molecules in sweat or even tears.