Micro- and nano-electromechanical systems for [bio]molecular analysis

Micro- and nano-mechanical structures fabricated by silicon micromachining technology can be used as transducing elements in [bio]chemical sensors. Cantilever beams with lengths in the tens of micrometers range and widths and thicknesses in the micrometer or submicrometer range are bent by forces in...

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Bibliographic Details
Author: Bausells, Joan
Format: article
Publication Date:2005
Country:España
Institution:Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
Repository:DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC
OAI Identifier:oai:digital.csic.es:10261/65698
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/10261/65698
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:MEMS
NEMS
Microcantilever
Biosensors
Description
Summary:Micro- and nano-mechanical structures fabricated by silicon micromachining technology can be used as transducing elements in [bio]chemical sensors. Cantilever beams with lengths in the tens of micrometers range and widths and thicknesses in the micrometer or submicrometer range are bent by forces in the range of intermolecular forces. The cantilever deflection can be detected by optical or electrical methods and converted to an electrical output. In this work we discuss the sensitivity and resolution of such electromechanical molecular detectors, and present various examples of existing developments and their application to [bio]molecular analysis.