A microsensor for trinitrotoluene vapour

Achieving tunable chemical reactivity through photo-initiation of energetic materials at metal oxide surfaces

Known applications of high energy density materials are impressively vast. Despite this, we argue that energetic materials are still underutilized for common energy purposes due to our inability to control explosive chemical reactions releasing energy from these materials. The situation appears paradoxical as energetic materials (EM) possess massive amounts of energy and, hence, should be most appropriate for applications in many energy-intensive processes. Here, we discover how chemical decomposition reactions can be stimulated with laser excitation and therefore, highly controlled by selectively designing energetic material - metal oxide interfaces with an example of pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN)-MgO and trinitrotoluene (TNT)-MgO composite samples. Density functional theory and embedded cluster method calculations were combined with measurements of the optical absorption spectra and laser initiation experiments. We found that the first (1064 nm, 1.17 eV), second (532 nm, 2.33 eV), and third (355 nm, 3.49 eV) laser harmonics, to all of which pure energetic materials are transparent, can be effectively used to trigger explosive reactions in the PETN-MgO samples. We propose a consistent electronic mechanism that explains how specific sub-band optical transitions initiate decomposition chemistry. Also, this selectivity reveals a fundamental difference between materials chemistry at interfaces as we show on examples of PETN and TNT energetic materials.

Construction of Rutile-TiO2 Nanoarray Homojuction for Non-Contact Sensing of TATP under Natural Light

Triacetone triperoxide (TATP) is a new terrorist explosive, and most nitrogen-based sensors fail to detect TATP. Herein, a sea urchin-like TiO2-covered TiO2 nanoarray is constructed as a TATP-sensitive homojunction (HJ) by one step hydrothermal method. By taking fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) and indium tin oxide (ITO) conducting glass as the substrate, the conducting glass is horizontally and vertically put in the reactor to epitaxially grow TiO2–FTO, TiO2–ITO, TiO2–FTO–HJ and TiO2–ITO–HJ. TiO2–FTO–HJ shows a broad absorption band edge in the visible region and high sensitivity to TATP under the simulating natural light compared with TiO2–FTO, TiO2–ITO, and TiO2–ITO–HJ. E-field intensity distribution simulation reveals that constructing homojunctions between the urchin-shaped TiO2 nanosphere and TiO2 nanoarrays can enhance the localized electromagnetic field intensity at the interface of junctions, which may provide photocatalysis active sites to reduce TATP molecules by promoting charge separation. Moreover, the TiO2–FTO–HJ shows high selectivity to TATP among ammonium nitrate, urea and sulfur, which are common homemade explosive raw materials.

Artificial Olfactory System for Trace Identification of Explosive Vapors Realized by Optoelectronic Schottky Sensing

A rapid, ultrasensitive artificial olfactory system based on an individual optoelectronic Schottky junction is demonstrated for the discriminative detection of explosive vapors, including military explosives and improvised explosives.

Photochemistry of the α-Al₂O₃-PETN Interface

Optical absorption measurements are combined with electronic structure calculations to explore photochemistry of an α-Al₂O₃-PETN interface formed by a nitroester (pentaerythritol tetranitrate, PETN, C₅H₈N₄O₁₂) and a wide band gap aluminum oxide (α-Al₂O₃) substrate. The first principles modeling is used to deconstruct and interpret the α-Al₂O₃-PETN absorption spectrum that has distinct peaks attributed to surface F⁰-centers and surface—PETN transitions. We predict the low energy α-Al₂O₃ F⁰-center—PETN transition, producing the excited triplet state, and α-Al₂O₃ F⁰-center—PETN charge transfer, generating the PETN anion radical. This implies that irradiation by commonly used lasers can easily initiate photodecomposition of both excited and charged PETN at the interface. The feasible mechanism of the photodecomposition is proposed.

“Not quenched” aggregates of a triphenylene derivative for the sensitive detection of trinitrotoluene in aqueous medium

“Not quenched” porous aggregates of triphenylene derivative 4 have been utilized for the detection of TNT in solution, solid and vapour phases with detection limits of 22.7 attograms cm⁻².

Piezotransistive transduction of femtoscale displacement for photoacoustic spectroscopy

Measurement of femtoscale displacements in the ultrasonic frequency range is attractive for advanced material characterization and sensing, yet major challenges remain in their reliable transduction using non-optical modalities, which can dramatically reduce the size and complexity of the transducer assembly. Here we demonstrate femtoscale displacement transduction using an AlGaN/GaN heterojunction field effect transistor-integrated GaN microcantilever that utilizes piezoelectric polarization-induced changes in two-dimensional electron gas to transduce displacement with very high sensitivity. The piezotransistor demonstrated an ultra-high gauge factor of 8,700 while consuming an extremely low power of 1.36 nW, and transduced external excitation with a superior noise-limited resolution of 12.43 fm Hz(-1/2) and an outstanding responsivity of 170 nV fm(-1), which is comparable to the optical transduction limits. These extraordinary characteristics, which enabled unique detection of nanogram quantity of analytes using photoacoustic spectroscopy, can be readily exploited in realizing a multitude of novel sensing paradigms.

APTS and rGO co-functionalized pyrenated fluorescent nanonets for representative vapor phase nitroaromatic explosive detection

For the first time, flexible PVP/pyrene/APTS/rGO fluorescent nanonets were designed and synthesized via a one-step electrospinning method to detect representative subsaturated nitroaromatic explosive vapor. The functional fluorescent nanonets, which were highly stable in air, showed an 81% quenching efficiency towards TNT vapor (∼10 ppb) with an exposure time of 540 s at room temperature. The nice performance of the nanonets was ascribed to the synergistic effects induced by the specific adsorption properties of APTS, the fast charge transfer properties and the effective π-π interaction with pyrene and TNT of rGO. Compared to the analogues of TNT, the PVP/pyrene/APTS/rGO nanonets showed notable selectivity towards TNT and DNT vapors. The explored functionalization method opens up brand new insight into sensitive and selective detection of vapor phase nitroaromatic explosives.

Topography of photochemical initiation in molecular materials

We propose a fluctuation model of the photochemical initiation of an explosive chain reaction in energetic materials. In accordance with the developed model, density fluctuations of photo-excited molecules serve as reaction nucleation sites due to the stochastic character of interactions between photons and energetic molecules. A further development of the reaction is determined by a competition of two processes. The first process is growth in size of the isolated reaction cell, leading to a micro-explosion and release of the material from the cell towards the sample surface. The second process is the overlap of reaction cells due to an increase in their size, leading to the formation of a continuous reaction zone and culminating in a macro-explosion, i.e., explosion of the entire area, covering a large part of the volume of the sample. Within the proposed analytical model, we derived expressions of the explosion probability and the duration of the induction period as a function of the initiation energy (exposure). An experimental verification of the model was performed by exploring the initiation of pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN) with the first harmonic of YAG: Nd laser excitation (1,064 nm, 10 ns), which has confirmed the adequacy of the model. This validation allowed us to make a few quantitative assessments and predictions. For example, there must be a few dozen optically excited molecules produced by the initial fluctuations for the explosive decomposition reaction to occur and the life-time of an isolated cell before the micro-explosion must be of the order of microseconds.

Attogram sensing of trinitrotoluene with a self-assembled molecular gelator

Detection of explosives is of utmost importance due to the threat to human security as a result of illegal transport and terrorist activities. Trinitrotoluene (TNT) is a widely used explosive in landmines and military operations that contaminates the environment and groundwater, posing a threat to human health. Achieving the detection of explosives at a sub-femtogram level using a molecular sensor is a challenge. Herein we demonstrate that a fluorescent organogelator exhibits superior detection capability for TNT in the gel form when compared to that in the solution state. The gel when coated on disposable paper strips detects TNT at a record attogram (ag, 10(-18) g) level (∼12 ag/cm(2)) with a detection limit of 0.23 ppq. This is a simple and low-cost method for the detection of TNT on surfaces or in aqueous solutions in a contact mode, taking advantage of the unique molecular packing of an organogelator and the associated photophysical properties.

Microcantilevers and organic transistors: two promising classes of label-free biosensing devices which can be integrated in electronic circuits

Most of the success of electronic devices fabricated to actively interact with a biological environment relies on the proper choice of materials and efficient engineering of surfaces and interfaces. Organic materials have proved to be among the best candidates for this aim owing to many properties, such as the synthesis tunability, processing, softness and self-assembling ability, which allow them to form surfaces that are compatible with biological tissues. This review reports some research results obtained in the development of devices which exploit organic materials' properties in order to detect biologically significant molecules as well as to trigger/capture signals from the biological environment. Among the many investigated sensing devices, organic field-effect transistors (OFETs), organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs) and microcantilevers (MCLs) have been chosen. The main factors motivating this choice are their label-free detection approach, which is particularly important when addressing complex biological processes, as well as the possibility to integrate them in an electronic circuit. Particular attention is paid to the design and realization of biocompatible surfaces which can be employed in the recognition of pertinent molecules as well as to the research of new materials, both natural and inspired by nature, as a first approach to environmentally friendly electronics.

Characterization of silver-gallium nanowires for force and mass sensing applications

We investigate the mechanical properties of cantilevered silver-gallium (Ag(2)Ga) nanowires using laser Doppler vibrometry. From measurements of the resonant frequencies and associated operating deflection shapes, we demonstrate that these Ag(2)Ga nanowires behave as ideal Euler-Bernoulli beams. Furthermore, radial asymmetries in these nanowires are detected through high resolution measurements of the vibration spectra. These crystalline nanowires possess many ideal characteristics for nanoscale force and mass sensing, including small spring constants (as low as 10(-4) N m(-1)), high frequency bandwidth with resonance frequencies in the 0.02-10 MHz range, small suspended mass (picograms), and relatively high Q-factors (approximately 2-50) under ambient conditions. We evaluate the utility of Ag(2)Ga nanowires for nanocantilever applications, including ultrasmall mass and high frequency bandwidth piconewton force detection.

Approaches to increasing surface stress for improving signal-to-noise ratio of microcantilever sensors

Microcantilever sensor technology has been steadily growing for the last 15 years. While we have gained a great amount of knowledge in microcantilever bending due to surface stress changes, which is a unique property of microcantilever sensors, we are still in the early stages of understanding the fundamental surface chemistries of surface-stress-based microcantilever sensors. In general, increasing surface stress, which is caused by interactions on the microcantilever surfaces, would improve the S/N ratio and subsequently the sensitivity and reliability of microcantilever sensors. In this review, we will summarize (A) the conditions under which a large surface stress can readily be attained and (B) the strategies to increase surface stress in case a large surface stress cannot readily be reached. We will also discuss our perspectives on microcantilever sensors based on surface stress changes.

Cantilever-based sensing: the origin of surface stress and optimization strategies

Many interactions drive the adsorption of molecules on surfaces, all of which can result in a measurable change in surface stress. This article compares the contributions of various possible interactions to the overall induced surface stress for cantilever-based sensing applications. The surface stress resulting from adsorption-induced changes in the electronic density of the underlying surface is up to 2-4 orders of magnitude larger than that resulting from intermolecular electrostatic or Lennard-Jones interactions. We reveal that the surface stress associated with the formation of high quality alkanethiol self-assembled monolayers on gold surfaces is independent of the molecular chain length, supporting our theoretical findings. This provides a foundation for the development of new strategies for increasing the sensitivity of cantilever-based sensors for various applications.

Nanomechanical Cantilever Array Sensors

Microfabricated cantilever sensors have attracted much interest in recent years as devices for the fast and reliable detection of small concentrations of molecules in air and solution. In addition to application of such sensors for gas and chemical-vapor sensing, for example as an artificial nose, they have also been employed to measure physical properties of tiny amounts of materials in miniaturized versions of conventional standard techniques such as calorimetry, thermogravimetry, weighing, photothermal spectroscopy, as well as for monitoring chemical reactions such as catalysis on small surfaces. In the past few years, the cantilever-sensor concept has been extended to biochemical applications and as an analytical device for measurements of biomaterials. Because of the label-free detection principle of cantilever sensors, their small size and scalability, this kind of device is advantageous for diagnostic applications and disease monitoring, as well as for genomics or proteomics purposes. The use of microcantilever arrays enables detection of several analytes simultaneously and solves the inherent problem of thermal drift often present when using single microcantilever sensors, as some of the cantilevers can be used as sensor cantilevers for detection, and other cantilevers serve as passivated reference cantilevers that do not exhibit affinity to the molecules to be detected.

Micro-differential thermal analysis detection of adsorbed explosive molecules using microfabricated bridges

Although micromechanical sensors enable chemical vapor sensing with unprecedented sensitivity using variations in mass and stress, obtaining chemical selectivity using the micromechanical response still remains as a crucial challenge. Chemoselectivity in vapor detection using immobilized selective layers that rely on weak chemical interactions provides only partial selectivity. Here we show that the very low thermal mass of micromechanical sensors can be used to produce unique responses that can be used for achieving chemical selectivity without losing sensitivity or reversibility. We demonstrate that this method is capable of differentiating explosive vapors from nonexplosives and is additionally capable of differentiating individual explosive vapors such as trinitrotoluene, pentaerythritol tetranitrate, and cyclotrimethylenetrinitromine. This method, based on a microfabricated bridge with a programmable heating rate, produces unique and reproducible thermal response patterns within 50 ms that are characteristic to classes of adsorbed explosive molecules. We demonstrate that this micro-differential thermal analysis technique can selectively detect explosives, providing a method for fast direct detection with a limit of detection of 600x10(-12) g.

NO₂ Detection Using Microcantilever Based Potentiometry

A highly sensitive and novel sensor platform for gases and volatile chemicals using microcantilever based potentiometry is reported. A resonant cantilever is used to detect the changes in surface work functions of functionalized substrates caused by adsorption of target gas molecules. Surface work function (SWF) changes were measured for different functionalization layers made of transition metal oxide thin films with the flow of NO₂. The rate of change in SWF for In₂O₃ and SnO₂ were found to be ∼80 and ∼100 μV/sec, respectively, for 70 ppm NO₂. A sensitivity of 64 μV/sec for SWF change was also found for 70 ppm NO₂ concentration for isolated clusters of ZnO nanowires, indicating that this technique is applicable even for nano-clusters of sensing materials where amperometric detection is impossible due to material discontinuity. NO₂ detection as low as 400 ppb was possible using highly insulating In₂O₃ and SnO₂ thin films (resistivity > 1 TΩ/□. Two different forms of nano scale graphite were compared with the transition oxide based functionalization layer for sensing sub-ppm NO₂ sensing. It was observed that nanostructured graphite (NG) shows much higher sensitivity and lower response time than transition metal oxides.

Biosensor-based on-site explosives detection using aptamers as recognition elements

Reliable observation, detection and characterisation of polluted soil are of major concern in regions with military activities in order to prepare efficient decontamination. Flexible on-site analysis may be facilitated by biosensor devices. With use of fibre-optic evanescent field techniques, it has been shown that immunoaffinity reactions can be used to determine explosives sensitively. Besides antibodies as molecular recognition elements, high-affinity nucleic acids (aptamers) can be employed. Aptamers are synthetically generated and highly efficient binding molecules that can be derived for any ligand, including small organic molecules like drugs, explosives or derivatives thereof. In this paper we describe the development of specific aptamers detecting the explosives molecule TNT. The aptamers are used as a sensitive capture molecule in a fibre-optic biosensor. In addition, through the biosensor measurements the aptamers could be characterised. The advantages of the aptamer biosensor include its robustness, its ability to discriminate between different explosives molecules while being insensitive to other chemical entities in natural soil and its potential to be incorporated into a portable device. Results can be obtained within minutes. The measurement is equally useful for soil that has been contaminated for a long time and for urgent hazardous spills.

An energy conservation approach to adsorbate-induced surface stress and the extraction of binding energy using nanomechanics

Surface stress induced by molecular adsorption in three different binding processes has been studied experimentally using a microcantilever sensor. A comprehensive free-energy analysis based on an energy conservation approach is proposed to explain the experimental observations. We show that when guest molecules bind to atoms/molecules on a microcantilever surface, the released binding energy is retained in the host surface, leading to a metastable state where the excess energy on the surface is manifested as an increase in surface stress leading to the bending of the microcantilever. The released binding energy appears to be almost exclusively channeled to the surface energy, and energy distribution to other channels, including heat, appears to be inactive for this micromechanical system. When this excess surface energy is released, the microcantilever relaxes back to the original state, and the relaxation time depends on the particular binding process involved. Such vapor phase experiments were conducted for three binding processes: physisorption, hydrogen bonding, and chemisorption. Binding energies for these three processes were also estimated.

Speciation of energetic materials on a microcantilever using surface reduction

Although microcantilevers have been used to detect explosives with extremely high sensitivity using variations in adsorption-induced bending and resonance frequency, obtaining selectivity remains a challenge. Reversible chemoselectivity at ambient temperatures based on receptor-based detection provides only limited selectivity due to the generality of chemical interactions. The oxygen imbalance in secondary explosives presents a means to achieve receptor-free speciation of explosives using surface reduction of adsorbed molecules. We demonstrate highly selective and real-time detection of Trinitrotoluene (TNT) using a copper oxide-coated cantilever with a surface reduction approach. Not only can this technique exclusively differentiate explosives from nonexplosives, but also it has the potential to specify individual explosives such as TNT, pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN), and RDX. This technique together with receptor-based detection techniques provides a multimodal approach for achieving very high selectivity.

Microcantilever sensors

Microfabricated cantilevers have been used in atomic force microscopy for the topography imagingof non-conductive surfaces for more than 20 years. Cantilever beams without tips have proved theirapplicability in recent years as miniaturized, ultrasensitive, and fast-responding sensors for applicationsin chemistry, physics, biochemistry, and medicine. Microcantilever sensors respond by bending dueto the absorption of molecules. A shift in resonance frequency also occurs. They can be operatedin different environments such as gaseous environment, liquids, or vacuum. In gas, microcantileversensors can be operated as an artificial nose, whereby the bending pattern of a microfabricatedarray of eight polymer-coated silicon cantilevers is characteristic of the different vapors from solvents,flavors, and beverages. When operated in a liquid, microcantilever sensors are able to detectbiochemical reactions. Each cantilever is functionalized with a specific biochemical probe receptor,sensitive for detection of the corresponding target molecule. Applications lie in the fields of label-and amplification-free detection of DNA hybridization, the detection of proteins as well as antigen-antibodyreactions, and the detection of larger entities, such as bacteria and fungi.

Detection of Cd(II) using antibody-modified microcantilever sensors

This work demonstrated the feasibility of detecting divalent Cd(II) ions using antibody-modified microcantilever (MCL) sensors. Different surface modification methods were compared and multilayer approach was found superior than others for MCL surface modifications for antibody-based Cd(II) sensor development. When the Cd(II)-EDTA complex sample is injected into the fluid cell where the MCL is held, the MCL bends upon the recognition of the Cd(II) complex by the antibody on the surface of the MCL. Control experiments showed that complex that does not contain Cd(II) did not cause any bending of the MCL. The detection limit of the sensor was approximately 10(-9) M. The reaction rate analysis indicated that Langmuir adsorption model is appropriate to describe the absorption of Cd(II)-EDTA-BSA on the antibody-covered MCL surface.

Selective detection of gas-phase TNT by integrated optical waveguide spectrometry using molecularly imprinted sol–gel sensing films

A chemical sensor was developed to detect the explosive 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) utilizing planar integrated optical waveguide (IOW) attenuated total reflection spectrometry. Submicron thick films of organically modified sol-gel polymers were deposited on the waveguide surface as the sensing layer. Sol-gels were molecularly imprinted for TNT using covalently bound template molecules linked to the matrix through 1 or 2 carbamate linkages. Upon chemical cleavage of the template and displacement of the TNT-like pendant groups from the matrix, shape-selective binding sites were created that possess a primary amine group. The amine was used to deprotonate bound TNT yielding an anionic form that absorbs visible light. Binding of TNT and subsequent conversion to the anion results in the attenuation of light propagating through the waveguide, thus creating a spectrophotometric device. Sensitivity can be achieved by taking advantage of the substantial pathlength provided by the use of single mode IOWs. The limit-of-detection to gas-phase TNT was found to be five parts-per-billion (ppbV) in ambient air at a flow rate of 40 mL min(-1) given a 60 s sampling time. The sensor is highly selective for TNT due to the selectivity of binding site recognition of TNT and the subsequent generation of the TNT anion. Response to TNT is not reversible which results in an integrating sensor device which, in theory, can improve the ability to detect small amounts of the explosive if the exposure time is sufficient in length.

Method for Label-Free Detection of Femtogram Quantities of Biologics in Flowing Liquid Samples

Rapid (approximately 10 min) measurement of very low concentration of pathogens (approximately 10 cells/mL) and protein (approximately fg/mL) has widespread use in medical diagnostics, monitoring biothreat agents, and in a broader context as a research method. For low-level pathogen, we currently use culture enrichment methods and, thus, rapid analysis is not possible. For low protein concentration, no direct method is currently available. We report here a novel macrocantilever design whose high-order resonant mode near 1 MHz exhibits mass detection sensitivity of 10 cells/mL for cells and 100 fg/mL for protein. The sensor is 1x3 mm and uses a piezoelectric layer for both actuation and sensing resonance. Sample is flowed (approximately 1 mL/min) past the antibody-immobilized sensor, and as antigen binds to the sensor, resonance frequency decreases in proportion to antigen concentration. The sensor showed selectivity to the pathogen even though copious nonpathogenic variant was simultaneously present.

Microcantilever sensing and actuation with end-grafted stimulus-responsive elastin-like polypeptides

Stimulus-responsive elastin-like polypeptides (ELPs) grafted onto surfaces are of significant technical interest because they can be exploited for force generation, in sensing applications, or as molecular switches with tunable properties. Changes in the conformational state of grafted ELPs, induced by a phase transition or changes in osmotic pressure, lead to significant changes in the surface stress in the ELP graft layer and translate into detectable changes in microcantilever deflection. In this study, we investigate the conformational mechanics of ELPs in response to changes in solution pH and ionic strength using atomic force microscopy (AFM) microcantilever deflection and quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) measurements. We show that the use of genetically encoded, surface-grafted ELPs is exciting for cantilever actuation and sensing because commonly available microfabricated cantilever springs offer a simple and nonintrusive way to detect changes in solvent type, temperature, and pH, promising great potential for sensing applications in microfluidic devices.

Polymeric nanolayers as actuators for ultrasensitive thermal bimorphs

Polymeric nanolayers are introduced here as active, thermal-stress mediating structures facilitating extremely sensitive thermal detection based upon the thermomechanical response of a bimaterial polymer-silicon microcantilever. To maximize the bimaterial bending effect, the microcantilever bimorph is composed of stiff polysilicon, with a strongly adhered polymer deposited via plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition. The polymer layers with thickness ranging from 20 to 200 nm possess a rapid and pronounced response to temperature fluctuations due to intrinsic sensitive thermal behavior. We show that by taking advantage of the thermal stresses generated by the huge mismatch of material properties in the polymer-silicon bimorph, unprecedented thermal sensitivities can be achieved. In fact, the temperature resolution of our bimaterial microcantilevers approaches 0.2 mK with thermal sensitivity reaching 2 nm/mK; both parameters are more than an order of magnitude better than the current metal-ceramic design. This new hybrid platform overcomes the inherently limited sensitivity of current sensor designs and provides the basis to develop the ultimate uncooled IR microsensor with unsurpassable sensitivity.

Chemomechanics of surface stresses induced by DNA hybridization

When biomolecular reactions occur on one surface of a microcantilever beam, changes in intermolecular forces create surface stresses that bend the cantilever. While this phenomenon has been exploited to create label-free biosensors and biomolecular actuators, the mechanisms through which chemical free energy is transduced to mechanical work in such hybrid systems are not fully understood. To gain insight into these mechanisms, we use DNA hybridization as a model reaction system. We first show that the surface grafting density of single-stranded probe DNA (sspDNA) on a surface is strongly correlated to its radius of gyration in solution, which in turn depends on its persistence length and the DNA chain length. Since the persistence length depends on ionic strength, the grafting density of sspDNA can be controlled by changing a solution's ionic strength. The surface stresses produced by the reaction of complementary single-stranded target DNA (sstDNA) to sspDNA depend on the length of DNA, the grafting density, and the hybridization efficiency. We, however, observe a remarkable trend: regardless of the length and grafting density of sspDNA, the surface stress follows an exponential scaling relation with the density of hybridized sspDNA.

Experimental and theoretical aspects of glucose measurement using a microcantilever modified by enzyme-containing polyacrylamide

We report a glucose oxidase-containing polyacrylamide hydrogel-coated microcantilever sensor for the measurement of glucose. This enzymatic reaction of glucose results in swelling of the hydrogel due to formation of charged ions (gluconate molecules and protons). The microcantilever undergoes reversible and reproducible bending deflection upon exposure to solutions containing various glucose concentrations due to swelling or shrinking of the hydrogels. The microcantilever deflections increase when the glucose concentrations increase. A theoretical model has been built to correlate volume changes of the gel with microcantilever bending. The calculated data matched with the experimental results very well. Such hydrogel-coated microcantilevers could potentially be used to prepare microcantilever-based chemical and biological sensors when other enzymes are immobilized in the hydrogel.

Glucose Oxidase Multilayer Modified Microcantilevers for Glucose Measurement

We report a novel enzyme-based microcantilever sensor by using layer-by-layer nanoassembly modification. A glucose oxidase (GOx) functionalized microcantilever underwent bending when it was exposed to glucose solutions. The magnitudes of bending were proportional to the concentrations of glucose. The cantilever bending was specific toward glucose, but not to other sugars such as mannose, fructose, or galactose. The flow rate effect on the cantilever bending response is also discussed. The bending mechanism was investigated, and the kinetic and thermodynamic analysis and experimental results showed that the conformational change of GOx and gluconic formation were the origin of cantilever deflection.

Stochastic Sensing of TNT with a Genetically Engineered Pore

Engineered versions of the transmembrane protein pore alpha-hemolysin (alphaHL) can be used as stochastic sensing elements for the identification and quantification of a wide variety of analytes at the single-molecule level. Until now, nitroaromatic analytes have eluded detection by this approach. We now report that binding sites for nitroaromatics can be built within the lumen of the alphaHL pore from simple rings of seven aromatic amino acid side chains (Phe, Tyr or Trp). By monitoring the ionic current that passes through a single pore at a fixed applied potential, various nitroaromatics can be distinguished from TNT on the basis of the amplitude and duration of individual current-blocking events. Rings of less than seven aromatics bind the analytes more weakly; this suggests that direct aromatic-aromatic interactions are involved. The engineered pores should be useful for the detection of explosives and, in combination with computational approaches and structural analysis, they could further our understanding of noncovalent interactions between aromatic molecules.

Desorption characteristics of uncoated silicon microcantilever surfaces for explosive and common nonexplosive vapors

We measured the desorption of explosive trinitrotoluene (TNT), pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN), and hexahydro-1,3,5-triazine (RDX) vapors from piezoresistive silicon microcantilevers under ambient air. Depending on the amount of vapor loaded on the cantilever, TNT desorption took a few minutes to tens of minutes (for nanogram quantities). On the other hand, no significant loss of PETN or RDX was observed after many hours. We also measured desorption of common "nonexplosive" compounds (water, acetone, and ethyl alcohol) and observed that desorption was too fast to be measured. There is a good correlation between the desorption time and the melting point (or the vapor pressure) of a particular substance. In principle, this method can be used to measure desorption rates of various substances from cantilever surfaces.