DNA separation mechanisms during electrophoresis.

This chapter describes the separation mechanisms used for DNA electrophoresis. The focus is on the concepts that may help the researcher understand the methodology, read the theoretical literature, analyze experimental data, identify the relevant separation regimes, and/or design optimization strategies. But first, let’s look at some key definitions. Since capillary electrophoresis (CE) is a “finish line” technique, the mobility μ(M) and the velocity v(M) of a molecule of size M (in bases or base pairs) in an electric field E are generally defined as: