Vertically Oriented Zinc Oxide Nanorod-Based Electrolyte-Gated Field-Effect Transistor for High-Performance Glucose...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Biosensors

Background:

• Nanomaterial-based biosensors offer potential for portable diagnostics but face fabrication challenges.
• Reproducible and stable biosensor devices are crucial for practical applications.
• Field-effect transistors (FETs) are suitable platforms for miniaturized sensor devices.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a stable and reproducible electrolyte-gated FET biosensor for glucose detection.
• To utilize a vertically oriented zinc oxide nanorod architecture for enhanced biosensing.
• To evaluate the performance of the fabricated glucose biosensor.

Main Methods:

• Vertically oriented zinc oxide nanorods were grown on FET channels using a low-temperature hydrothermal method.
• Glucose oxidase enzyme was immobilized onto the zinc oxide nanorods via physical adsorption.
• Electrical properties of the electrolyte-gated FET biosensor were measured across varying glucose concentrations.

Main Results:

• A linear current increase was observed up to 80 mM glucose concentration.
• The biosensor exhibited high sensitivity (74.78 μA/mMcm²) and a low detection limit (∼0.05 mM).
• The fabrication process demonstrated high reproducibility, with vertically grown nanorods improving enzyme immobilization and activity.

Conclusions:

• The developed zinc oxide nanorod-based FET biosensor offers a reproducible and highly sensitive platform for glucose detection.
• The nanostructure enhances enzyme loading and activity, leading to improved sensing performance.
• The biosensor shows promise for application in biological samples, including mouse blood, and for detecting a wide range of analytes.