Abstract: System, including apparatus and methods, for aspirating at least a portion of an emulsion from a well using a tip. In some embodiments, the tip may have a flat end and an inlet surrounded by the flat end. The well may have a floor with one or more surface features that prevent uninterrupted circumferential contact of the flat end of the tip with any region of the floor. In some embodiments, the tip may not have a flat end. In some embodiments, the well may have a port that guides the tip to the floor with the tip slanted with respect to the floor. Methods of making a device that includes the well are also disclosed.

Abstract: A system, including methods and apparatus, for generating droplets suitable for droplet-based assays. The disclosed systems may include (1) a droplet generation component configured to form sample-containing droplets by merging aqueous, sample-containing fluid with a background emulsion fluid such as oil, to form an emulsion of sample-containing droplets suspended in the background fluid, and (2) a droplet reservoir component configured to receive the droplet emulsion from the droplet generation component and then to be separated from the droplet generation component, so that subsequent assay steps may be conveniently performed using the droplet reservoir component. In some examples, the droplet reservoir component may be an industry standard PCR tube or a strip of interconnected PCR tubes.

Abstract: System, including apparatus and methods, for aspirating at least a portion of an emulsion from a well using a tip. In some embodiments, the tip may have a flat end and an inlet surrounded by the flat end. The well may have a floor with one or more surface features that prevent uninterrupted circumferential contact of the flat end of the tip with any region of the floor. In some embodiments, the tip may not have a flat end. In some embodiments, the well may have a port that guides the tip to the floor with the tip slanted with respect to the floor. Methods of making a device that includes the well are also disclosed.