Microfluidics cavitation and jetting: an ultrafast inertial tool for bioengineering and medicine at the mesoscale

Abstract

Microfluidic cavitation and jetting enable ultrafast, highly focused liquid microjets that can interact with soft matter at the mesoscale in ways unattainable with conventional tools. In this keynote, I will discuss how confined cavitation in microfluidic systems can be precisely tuned to control jet formation, dynamics, and penetration into soft substrates, including skin, thereby creating an inertial platform for minimally invasive bioengineering and medical applications. I will highlight how these phenomena bridge fundamental fluid dynamics with practical technologies for needle-free drug delivery and advanced mesoscale processing in medicine and biotechnology.