Small-scale mixing is of uttermost importance in bio- and chemical analyses using micro TAS (total analysis systems) or lab-on-chips. Many microfluidic applications involve chemical reactions where, most often, the fluid diffusivity is very low so that without the help of chaotic advection the reaction time can be extremely long. In this article, we will review various kinds of mixers developed for use in microfluidic devices. Our review starts by defining the terminology necessary to understand the fundamental concept of mixing and by introducing quantities for evaluating the mixing performance, such as mixing index and residence time. In particular, we will review the concept of chaotic advection and the mathematical terms, Poincare section and Lyapunov exponent. Since these concepts are developed from nonlinear dynamical systems, they should play important roles in devising microfluidic devices with enhanced mixing performance. Following, we review the various designs of mixers that are employed in applications. We will classify the designs in terms of the driving forces, including mechanical, electrical and magnetic forces, used to control fluid flow upon mixing. The advantages and disadvantages of each design will also be addressed. Finally, we will briefly touch on the expected future development regarding mixer design and related issues for the further enhancement of mixing performance.

The near-field enhancement and localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) on the core-shell noble metal nanostructure surfaces are widely studied for various biomedical applications. However, the study of the optical properties of new plasmonic non-spherical nanostructures is less explored. This numerical study quantifies the optical properties of spherical and non-spherical (prolate and oblate) dimer nanostructures by introducing finite element modelling in COMSOL Multiphysics. The surface plasmon resonance peaks of gold nanostructures should be understood and controlled for use in biological applications such as photothermal therapy and drug delivery. In this study, we find that non-spherical prolate and oblate gold dimers give excellent tunability in a wide range of biological windows. The electromagnetic field enhancement and surface plasmon resonance peak can be tuned by varying the aspect ratio of non-spherical nanostructures, the refractive index of the surrounding medium, shell thickness, and the distance of separation between nanostructures. The absorption spectra exhibit considerably greater dependency on the aspect ratio and refractive index than the shell thickness and separation distance. These results may be essential for applying the spherical and non-spherical nanostructures to various absorption-based applications.