Continuous biomolecule separation in a nanofilter

A method of sorting a fluid mixture comprising a plurality of biopolymers, which vary in terms of the physico-chemical characteristics of each of said plurality of biopolymers, said method comprising the steps of:

• f) loading a fluid mixture comprising a plurality of biopolymers in a biomolecular sorter comprising:
• i. a substrate;
• ii. a plurality of obstacles arranged at regular intervals in a plurality of rows, columns or combinations thereof on a surface of said substrate, wherein said obstacles are so arranged as to form gaps between said obstacles, with horizontal gaps being of a depth less than vertical gaps between said obstacles, and said gaps form channels for fluid conductance, when fluid is introduced in said sorter, the depth of the horizontal gaps is at most 10 nm;
• iii. a sample inlet to said sorter;
• iv. microfluidic channels in fluid communication with said channels;
• v. sample collection ports in fluid communication with said channels;
• vi. at least a first conduit for applying an electrostatic force field or hydrodynamic force field parallel in direction to said rows;
• vii. at least a second conduit for applying an electrostatic force field or hydrodynamic force field parallel in direction to said columns, and perpendicular in direction to said rows;
• and
• g) applying said electrostatic force field or hydrodynamic force field parallel in direction to said rows, and said electrostatic force field or hydrodynamic force field parallel in direction to said columns, and perpendicular in direction to said rows, whereby applying said force fields allows for separation of said plurality of biopolymers through said channels, said at least a first conduit and said at least a second conduit provide said electrostatic force field or hydrodynamic force field to a sieving matrix by acting as electro-current injectors or fluidic flow injectors which enables separation of materials introduced by said biopolymers, wherein a fabrication process of said matrix defines a specified geometrical shape of a cross-section of said rows, said gaps comprise a first set of regions that includes nanofilters and a second set of regions that includes microfluidic channels, said biopolymers transit through said first set and second set of regions, said first set of regions provides steric hindrance of said biopolymers through said transit;
• and
• h) collecting separated biopolymers obtained in (b) from said sample collection ports.