Flow cytometer for measurement of the light scattering of viral and other submicroscopic particles

Light scattering is an essential parameter in flow cytometry, facilitating functions such as size measurement, discrimination of cell types on the basis of shape and morphology, detection of fluorescence‐negative cells, and gating of fluorescence measurements. Light scattering measurement of viruses is generally not feasible with current flow cytometers due to their small size. The problem is aggravated by the fact that the light scattering of particles in this size range (<200 nm) falls off with roughly the sixth power of their linear dimensions.