Nanoparticle Structured Sensor

About

The invention describes a technology for the design and fabrication of interdigitated microelectrode array devices on glass and flexible polymer substrates. The interdigitated microelectrode (IME) array devices are fabricated on glass substrates as Stiff Sensor Array (SSA) chips, and on polymer substrates (i.e. PET) as Flexible Sensor Array (FSA) chips. The former involves small scale fabrication using microfabrication technology, whereas the latter involves large scale fabrication using R2R processing technology. Methods have also been developed for assembling nanostructured sensing thin films on both the IME devices and types of chips. These SSA or FSA chips will be used as plug-and-play sensor modules on handheld sensor hardware. The array chip devices feature plug-and-play functionality with individually addressable sensing elements which can be easily interfaced with hardware and software for data acquisition and pattern recognition analysis. The flexible chemiresistor sensor and an intelligent pattern recognition engine can be incorporated in a handheld device that can detect a molecule of interest in a fluid (e.g., a liquid or gas) accurately, rapidly, and without false positives. Any sensing array nanomaterial, pattern recognition, and compact/or electronic hardware can be integrated to achieve a desired detection limit and response speed. The products also feature mass production of the devices with low cost.  KEY ELEMENTS Can detect a molecule of interest in a fluid (i.e. liquid or gas) accurately, rapidly, and without false positives.  Can be integrated into any sensing array nanomaterial, pattern recognition, and/or electronic hardware to achieve a desired detection limit and response speed Can be mass produced at a low cost APPLICATIONS Detection of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), chemical warfare or toxic agents, ion mobility spectrometers, surface acoustic devices, mass spectrometers, antibody-based technology with optical reporters, gas chromatography and mass spectroscopy, fluorescence-based sensor array, etc ADVANTAGES Can detect a molecule of interest in a fluid (i.e. liquid or gas) accurately, rapidly, and without false positives.  Chemiresistor sensors that are more selective and stable and that require lower temperatures to operate than existing sensors.  Lower fabrication costs for individual sensors, by reducing the cost of integrating the array onto a single substrate, and by eliminating the sensor-to-processor attach cost. U.S. Patent Application 13/325,978 (issuing on July 14, 2015 - 9,080,942)