Microarray Technique An array is an orderly arrangement of samples where matching of known and unknown DNA samples is done based on base pairing rules. An array experiment makes use of common assay systems such as microplates or standard blotting membranes. The sample spot sizes are typically less than 200 microns in diameter usually contain thousands of spots. Thousands of spotted samples known as probes (with known identity) are immobilized on a solid support (a microscope glass slides or silicon chips or nylon membrane). The spots can be DNA, cDNA, or oligonucleotides. These are used to determine complementary binding of the unknown sequences thus allowing parallel analysis for gene expression and gene discovery. An experiment with a single DNA chip can provide information on thousands of genes simultaneously. An orderly arrangement of the probes on the support is important as the location of each spot on the array is used for the identification of a gene.