Nanoparticles, particles which are smaller than 100nm, benefit a wide range of applications including the synthesis of silicon based fluorescent nanoparticles (quantum dots) to label biomolecules for diagnostic assays, drug delivery, and cellular imaging.

Microfluidics technology is ideal for nanoparticle synthesis. Reducing reagent consumption, it allows tighter particle size distributions, improved control over reaction times and temperatures, as well as better mixing efficiency.