The OpenDrop platform features a modular driver board system. The standard driver board, equipped with two 64-channel high-voltage driver chips, can be upgraded to a version that also includes two magnetic levers for magnetic bead separation, as well as a temperature controller for regulating heated zones on the cartridge

Magnetic beads are tiny particles with a magnetic core, often coated with specific chemical or biological ligands, and are widely used in lab applications for separation, purification, and analysis. By trapping and releasing them using a magnetic field, washing and separation steps can be performed on the OpenDrop, replacing the need for a centrifuge or filtration system.

Researchers from the Mads Clausen Institute, University of Southern Denmark, and the Institute of Materials Science, Kaunas University of Technology, have been using the OpenDrop with magnetic beads in their work on assembling nano-sized colloidal systems. These hybrid nanoparticles introduce new functionalities that allow them to be used as nanomachines with numerous possible applications, described as a pioneering route for developing nanoscale functional devices, enabling breakthroughs in various fields, including electronics, photonics, energy, sensing, and biomedical applications. Link.