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Updated: Aug 6, 2025
Preparation of Silicon Nanowire Field-effect Transistor for Chemical and Biosensing Applications
Published on: April 21, 2016
An ultrasensitive FET biosensor based on vertically aligned MoS2 nanolayers with abundant surface active sites
Pengfei Song1, Pengfei Ou2, Yongjie Wang3
1Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, University of Toronto, 5 King's College Road, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 3G8, Canada; Department of Mechanical Engineering, McGill University, 817 Sherbrooke Street West, Montreal, Quebec, H3A 0C3, Canada; School of Advanced Technology, Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University, 111 Ren'ai Road, Suzhou, 215000, China.
This study introduces a new molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) biosensor for detecting prostate-specific antigen (PSA). The vertically-aligned nanolayers offer ultrasensitive, rapid, and easy detection for early disease diagnosis.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Nanotechnology
- Biomedical Engineering
Background:
- Molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) nanolayers are promising for field-effect transistor (FET) biosensors.
- Existing MoS2 biosensors face challenges in molecule functionalization.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop an ultrasensitive FET biosensor using vertically-aligned MoS2 nanolayers (VAMNs) for label-free prostate-specific antigen (PSA) detection.
- To demonstrate the advantages of VAMNs over planar MoS2 for biosensor applications.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of VAMNs using chemical vapor deposition (CVD).
- Functionalization with 11-mercaptoundecanoic acid.
- Detection of PSA using FET.
- Surface characterization and density functional theory calculations.
Main Results:
- VAMNs exhibit abundant surface-exposed active edge sites with high binding affinity for thiol-based linkers.
- Demonstrated facile fabrication and potential for mass production.
- Achieved rapid (20 min) and ultrasensitive PSA detection in human serum (LOD: 800 fg mL⁻¹).
Conclusions:
- The VAMNs-based FET biosensor offers ultrahigh sensitivity, ease of fabrication, and short assay time.
- This technology holds significant potential for early-stage diagnosis of diseases like prostate cancer.
- VAMNs overcome functionalization challenges associated with planar MoS2 nanolayers.
