Dual-plane n-DEP gating for active retention and controlled ejection of colloidal particles in nanowell arrays.

We introduce a dual-plane, independently addressable electrode architecture integrated with nanowell arrays for frequency-tuned dielectrophoretic control of 200 nm particles. Unlike conventional single-plane systems, vertical field decoupling enables array-wide p-DEP capture, n-DEP refinement and stable retention, and controlled ejection without auxiliary flow-based or mechanical confinement, establishing reversible on-chip particle manipulation.