Detection of Thermal Transport on Chip Using Gate-Induced Drain Leakage Current.

In this paper, we propose a method to detect thermal transport suitable in nanometers scale. It is feasible using the GIDL-biased MOSFET as thermal sensor. It is because the GIDL current is occurred due to the band-to-band tunnelling of the electron in a small overlap region between gate and drain.

A 3D-printed flow distributor with uniform flow rate control for multi-stacked microfluidic systems.

In the scale-up of chemical production in a microfluidic system, it is challenging to prevent flow maldistribution from a single inlet into stacked multiple microchannel exits. In the present study, a compact flow distributor equipped with a fluidic damper is developed by computational fluid dynamics (CFD) along with experimental validation. A microfluidic flow distributor, which is equipped with an optimized fluidic damper and consists of 25 exit channels, is fabricated as an integrated body using a digital light processing (DLP) type 3D printer.

Design and numerical analysis of surface plasmon-enhanced fin Ge-Si light-emitting diode.

Heavily-doped strained germanium (Ge) can emit light efficiently thanks to its pseudo direct band gap characteristic. This makes Ge a good candidate for on-chip monolithic light sources in silicon (Si) photonics systems. We propose fin-shaped Ge-Si heterojunction light-emitting diode (LED) with metal gates, which can enhance light emission by coupling with surface plasmon resonant modes and modulate light emission from the LED.

Hydrogen-atom-mediated electrochemistry.

Silicon dioxide thin films are widely used as dielectric layers in microelectronics and can also be engineered on silicon wafers. It seems counterintuitive that electrochemical reactions could occur on such an insulator without relying on tunnelling current. Here we report electrochemistry based on electron transfer through a thin insulating layer of thermally grown silicon dioxide on highly n-doped silicon.

Modulation of molecular hybridization and charge screening in a carbon nanotube network channel using the electrical pulse method.

In this paper, we investigate the effect of electrical pulse bias on DNA hybridization events in a biosensor platform, using a Carbon Nanotube Network (CNN) and Gold Nano Particles (GNP) as an electrical channel. The scheme provides both hybridization rate enhancement of bio molecules, and electrical measurement in a transient state to avoid the charge screening effect, thereby significantly improving the sensitivity. As an example, the probe DNA molecules oscillate with pulse trains, resulting in the enhancement of DNA hybridization efficiency, and accordingly of the sensor performances in Tris-EDTA (TE) buffer solution, by as much as over three times, compared to the non-biasing conditions.

Comparative analysis of electrical detection methods of DNA synthesis.

The incorporation of a complementary deoxynucleotide (dNTP) into a self-primed single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) attached to the surface of a sensor electrode generates an H+ charge that can be either trapped on the sensor surface or diffused into the surrounding solution. Electrical detection methods of DNA synthesis are based on these H+ kinetic mechanisms. The detection method that uses ISFET, which is related to the surface trapping mechanism, showed a better sensing signal than the induced charge detection method, which is related to the diffusion of H+ into the surrounding solution.

Integrating metal-oxide-decorated CNT networks with a CMOS readout in a gas sensor.

We have implemented a tin-oxide-decorated carbon nanotube (CNT) network gas sensor system on a single die. We have also demonstrated the deposition of metallic tin on the CNT network, its subsequent oxidation in air, and the improvement of the lifetime of the sensors. The fabricated array of CNT sensors contains 128 sensor cells for added redundancy and increased accuracy.

Multi-order dynamic range DNA sensor using a gold decorated SWCNT random network.

A novel electrical DNA biosensor is presented, which consists of gold (Au) nanoscale islands and a single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) network on top of a concentric Au electrode array (also referred to as the CGi). The decorated Au islands on the SWCNT network provide ideal docking sites for ss-DNA probe (p-DNA) molecules. They also provide better adhesion between the SWCNT network and the chip substrate.

Preparation of polydiacetylene immobilized optically encoded beads.

Polydiacetylene (PDA), which can change the chromic and fluorescence properties by inducing environmental perturbations, is immobilized on planar solid supports for many biological applications. In this work, we immobilize PDA onto optically encoded spherical beads (PDA-SERS beads). The prepared PDA immobilized beads (36 μm) exhibit a blue color without fluorescence.

Carbon nanotube-based dual-mode biosensor for electrical and surface plasmon resonance measurements.

We have developed carbon nanotube-based dual-mode biosensors with a metal semiconductor field effect transistor structure on a quartz substrate. DNA hybridization occurring on the Au top gate can be detected by simultaneously measuring the change in the electrical conductance and the surface plasmon resonance (SPR). Since electrical and SPR measurements offer high sensitivity and reliability, respectively, this dual-mode biosensor is expected to provide both of these features.

Biosensor system-on-a-chip including CMOS-based signal processing circuits and 64 carbon nanotube-based sensors for the detection of a neurotransmitter.

We developed a carbon nanotube (CNT)-based biosensor system-on-a-chip (SoC) for the detection of a neurotransmitter. Here, 64 CNT-based sensors were integrated with silicon-based signal processing circuits in a single chip, which was made possible by combining several technological breakthroughs such as efficient signal processing, uniform CNT networks, and biocompatible functionalization of CNT-based sensors. The chip was utilized to detect glutamate, a neurotransmitter, where ammonia, a byproduct of the enzymatic reaction of glutamate and glutamate oxidase on CNT-based sensors, modulated the conductance signals to the CNT-based sensors.

Effects of oleamide on choline acetyltransferase and cognitive activities.

We screened 50 Korean traditional natural plants to measure the activation effect on choline acetyltransferase and attenuation of scopolamine-induced amnesia. The methanolic extracts from Zizyphus jujuba among the tested 50 plants, showed the highest activatory effect (34.1%) on choline acetyltransferase in vitro.