Development and Characterisation of a Whole Hybrid Sol-Gel Optofluidic Platform for Biosensing Applications
Emma MacHugh1,2, Graceson Antony3,4, Arun Kumar Mallik5
1School of Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Technological University Dublin, City Campus Grangegorman, D07 H6K8 Dublin, Ireland.
Nanomaterials (Basel, Switzerland)
|December 11, 2022
Summary
Researchers developed a novel hybrid sol-gel optofluidic platform integrating microfluidics and optical waveguides. This innovative biosensor platform demonstrates potential for sensitive optical and biological detection.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Optoelectronics
- Biotechnology
Background:
- Optofluidic platforms integrate optical and microfluidic functionalities for advanced sensing.
- Hybrid sol-gel materials offer tunable optical and mechanical properties for device fabrication.
Purpose of the Study:
- To fabricate a novel, fully integrated hybrid sol-gel optofluidic platform using photolithography.
- To demonstrate the optical and biosensing capabilities of the developed platform.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of a photoreactive hybrid sol-gel material.
- Integration of microfluidic channels and optical waveguides using photolithography.
- Optical characterization with fluorescent dye (Atto 633).
- Biosensing assay using antibody detection.
Main Results:
- Successful fabrication of an optofluidic platform with waveguides (5.5–7 μm thickness, RIC of 3.5 × 10⁻³).
- Demonstrated optical response correlation with fluorescent dye concentration.
- Achieved a limit of detection (LOD) of 50 μg/mL in biosensing.
Conclusions:
- The hybrid sol-gel optofluidic platform enables seamless integration of optical and microfluidic components.
- The platform shows significant potential for sensitive optical detection and biosensing applications.
