Microfluidic structures include micropneumatic systems, i.e. microsystems for the handling of off-chip fluids (liquid pumps, gas valves, etc.), and microfluidic structures for the on-chip handling of nanoliter (nl) and picoliter (pl) volumes.  To date, the most successful commercial application of microfluidics is the inkjet printhead. Additionally, microfluidic manufacturing advances mean that makers can produce the devices in low-cost plastics and automatically verify part quality.
Advances in microfluidics technology are revolutionizing molecular biology procedures for enzymatic analysis (e.g.,  glucose and lactate assays), DNA analysis (e.g., polymerase chain reaction and high-throughput sequencing), proteomics, and in chemical synthesis. The basic idea of microfluidic biochips is to integrate assay operations such as detection, as well as sample pre-treatment and sample preparation on one chip.
An emerging application area for biochips is clinical pathology, especially the immediate point-of-care diagnosis of diseases. In addition, microfluidics-based devices, capable of continuous sampling and real-time testing of air/water samples for biochemical toxins and other dangerous pathogens, can serve as an always-on "bio-smoke alarm" for early warning.
Microfluidic technology has led to the creation of powerful tools for biologists to control the complete cellular environment, leading to new questions and discoveries. Many diverse advantages of this technology for microbiology are listed below:
* General single cell studies including growth
* Cellular aging: microfluidic devices such as the "mother machine" allow tracking of thousands of individual cells for many generations until they die
* Microenvironmental control: ranging from mechanical environment to chemical environment
* Precise spatiotemporal concentration gradients by incorporating multiple chemical inputs to a single device
* Force measurements of adherent cells or confined chromosomes: objects trapped in a microfluidic device can be directly manipulated using optical tweezers or other force-generating methods
* Confining cells and exerting controlled forces by coupling with external force-generation methods such as Stokes flow, optical tweezer, or controlled deformation of the PDMS (Polydimethylsiloxane) device
* Electric field integration
* Plant on a chip and plant tissue culture
* Antibiotic resistance: microfluidic devices can be used as heterogeneous environments for microorganisms. In a heterogeneous environment, it is easier for a microorganism to evolve. This can be useful for testing the acceleration of evolution of a microorganism / for testing the development of antibiotic resistance.
Some of these areas are further elaborated in the sections below: