Bionic Magnetic Sensor Based on the MagR/Cry4 Complex-Configured Graphene Transistor with an Integrated On-Chip Gate

Area of Science:

• Biophysics
• Materials Science
• Sensor Technology

Background:

• Magnetically sensitive proteins are crucial for animals' geomagnetic field perception.
• Real-time monitoring of these proteins' magnetic field responses is technically challenging.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a real-time, highly sensitive magnetic sensor.
• To investigate the response of the MagR/Cry4 complex to magnetic fields.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of a graphene electrolyte-gated transistor (EGT) integrated with an on-chip gate.
• Immobilization of the MagR/Cry4 complex onto the EGT's bio-interface using denatured bovine serum albumin.
• Optimization and characterization of the bionic graphene EGT for magnetic field detection.

Main Results:

• The developed bionic graphene EGT can detect magnetic fields in real time.
• Achieved a sensitivity of 1 millitesla (mT), significantly lower than previous research.
• Demonstrated the potential of MagR/Cry4 complex-configured graphene EGTs for geomagnetic field detection.

Conclusions:

• The MagR/Cry4 complex-configured graphene EGT is a promising tool for geomagnetic field detection.
• The developed approach offers a general solution for real-time recording of magnetically sensitive biomolecule responses to magnetic fields.