A sprayed graphene transistor platform for rapid and low-cost chemical sensing

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Chemical Engineering
• Electronics Engineering

Background:

• Graphene field-effect transistors (GFETs) offer high sensitivity for chemical sensing.
• Developing cost-effective and scalable manufacturing methods for GFET-based sensors remains a challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate a novel, versatile, and scalable sensing platform for chemical sensor test strips.
• To utilize electrolyte-gated GFETs and a Lab-on-PCB approach for sensor fabrication.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of a Lab-on-PCB platform using sprayable graphene ink.
• Development of electrolyte-gated graphene field-effect transistors.
• Testing the platform's performance for sensing pH and Na+ concentrations in aqueous solutions.

Main Results:

• Achieved high sensitivity for pH sensing (143 ± 4 μA per pH).
• Demonstrated high sensitivity for Na+ concentration sensing (131 ± 5 μA per log10Na+).
• Performance is comparable to state-of-the-art graphene chemical sensors.

Conclusions:

• The Lab-on-PCB platform offers an easy, low-cost, and scalable method for producing chemical sensor test strips.
• The demonstrated sensing capabilities highlight the platform's versatility for various analytes.
• This approach paves the way for widespread adoption of graphene-based chemical sensors.