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Lazaro A, Villarino R, Lazaro M, Canellas N, Prieto-Simon B, Girbau D. Recent Advances in Batteryless NFC Sensors for Chemical Sensing and Biosensing. BIOSENSORS 2023; 13:775. [PMID: 37622861 PMCID: PMC10452174 DOI: 10.3390/bios13080775] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2023] [Revised: 07/28/2023] [Accepted: 07/29/2023] [Indexed: 08/26/2023]
Abstract
This article reviews the recent advances in the field of batteryless near-field communication (NFC) sensors for chemical sensing and biosensing. The commercial availability of low-cost commercial NFC integrated circuits (ICs) and their massive integration in smartphones, used as readers and cloud interfaces, have aroused great interest in new batteryless NFC sensors. The fact that coil antennas are not importantly affected by the body compared with other wireless sensors based on far-field communications makes this technology suitable for future wearable point-of-care testing (PoCT) devices. This review first compares energy harvesting based on NFC to other energy-harvesting technologies. Next, some practical recommendations for designing and tuning NFC-based tags are described. Power transfer is key because in most cases, the energy harvested has to be stable for several seconds and not contaminated by undesired signals. For this reason, the effect of the dimensions of the coils and the conductivity on the wireless power transfer is thoroughly discussed. In the last part of the review, the state of the art in NFC-based chemical and biosensors is presented. NFC-based tags (or sensor tags) are mainly based on commercial or custom NFC ICs, which are used to harvest the energy from the RF field generated by the smartphone to power the electronics. Low-consumption colorimeters and potentiostats can be integrated into these NFC tags, opening the door to the integration of chemical sensors and biosensors, which can be harvested and read from a smartphone. The smartphone is also used to upload the acquired information to the cloud to facilitate the internet of medical things (IoMT) paradigm. Finally, several chipless sensors recently proposed in the literature as a low-cost alternative for chemical applications are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonio Lazaro
- Department of Electronics, Electrics and Automatic Control Engineering, Rovira i Virgili University, 43007 Tarragona, Spain; (R.V.); (M.L.); (N.C.); (B.P.-S.); (D.G.)
| | - Ramon Villarino
- Department of Electronics, Electrics and Automatic Control Engineering, Rovira i Virgili University, 43007 Tarragona, Spain; (R.V.); (M.L.); (N.C.); (B.P.-S.); (D.G.)
| | - Marc Lazaro
- Department of Electronics, Electrics and Automatic Control Engineering, Rovira i Virgili University, 43007 Tarragona, Spain; (R.V.); (M.L.); (N.C.); (B.P.-S.); (D.G.)
| | - Nicolau Canellas
- Department of Electronics, Electrics and Automatic Control Engineering, Rovira i Virgili University, 43007 Tarragona, Spain; (R.V.); (M.L.); (N.C.); (B.P.-S.); (D.G.)
| | - Beatriz Prieto-Simon
- Department of Electronics, Electrics and Automatic Control Engineering, Rovira i Virgili University, 43007 Tarragona, Spain; (R.V.); (M.L.); (N.C.); (B.P.-S.); (D.G.)
- Catalan Institution for Research and Advanced Studies (ICREA), Pg. Lluís Companys 23, 08010 Barcelona, Spain
| | - David Girbau
- Department of Electronics, Electrics and Automatic Control Engineering, Rovira i Virgili University, 43007 Tarragona, Spain; (R.V.); (M.L.); (N.C.); (B.P.-S.); (D.G.)
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Lazaro A, Villarino R, Lazaro M, Canellas N, Prieto-Simon B, Girbau D. Battery-Less NFC Potentiostat for Electrochemical Point-of-Care Sensors Based on COTS Components. SENSORS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2022; 22:7213. [PMID: 36236310 PMCID: PMC9573601 DOI: 10.3390/s22197213] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2022] [Revised: 09/16/2022] [Accepted: 09/20/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
This work studies the feasibility of using a battery-less Near-Field Communication (NFC) potentiostat for the next generation of electrochemical point-of-care sensors. A design based on an NFC microchip, a microcontroller, and a custom potentiostat based on an operational amplifier is presented. A proof-of-concept prototype has been designed and used to quantify glucose concentration using commercial glucose test strips from chronoamperometry measurements. The device is harvested and the sensor is read using a mobile phone. The prototype uses an antenna loop covered with ferrite sheets to ensure stable operation of the electronics when the mobile phone is used as reader. The use of ferrite reduces the detuning caused by the proximity of the metal parts of the mobile phone. A comparison with a commercial glucometer device is provided. Results obtained using a commercial glucometer and those provided by the proposed potentiostat show an excellent agreement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonio Lazaro
- Department of Electronics, Electrics and Automatic Control Engineering, Rovira i Virgili University, 43007 Tarragona, Spain
| | - Ramon Villarino
- Department of Electronics, Electrics and Automatic Control Engineering, Rovira i Virgili University, 43007 Tarragona, Spain
| | - Marc Lazaro
- Department of Electronics, Electrics and Automatic Control Engineering, Rovira i Virgili University, 43007 Tarragona, Spain
| | - Nicolau Canellas
- Department of Electronics, Electrics and Automatic Control Engineering, Rovira i Virgili University, 43007 Tarragona, Spain
| | - Beatriz Prieto-Simon
- Catalan Institution for Research and Advanced Studies (ICREA), Passeig de Lluís Companys 23, 08010 Barcelona, Spain
| | - David Girbau
- Department of Electronics, Electrics and Automatic Control Engineering, Rovira i Virgili University, 43007 Tarragona, Spain
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Abstract
A novel paper-based potentiometric platform for the simple and fast monitoring of water hardness is presented. First, potentiometric ion-selective electrodes for calcium and magnesium printed on a paper substrate were built and optimized. These sensors, which display near-Nernstian sensitivity, were used for the determination of the concentration of these cations and the calculation of the water hardness. Second, the incorporation of a solid-state reference electrode allowed building an integrated paper-based potentiometric cell for the determination of the hardness of artificial and real samples (mineral waters). The validation of the results shows good ability to predict hardness in the conventional scale. Truly decentralized measurements were demonstrated by integration of a miniaturized instrument and dedicated software in a portable device. The measurements were able to be performed in just under two minutes, including a two-point calibration. Since the method is simple to use and cost-effective, it can be implemented in domestic and industrial settings.
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Smartphone-Based NFC Potentiostat for Wireless Electrochemical Sensing. APPLIED SCIENCES-BASEL 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/app11010392] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Most electrochemical sensing requires affordable, portable and easy-to-use electrochemical devices for use in point-of-care testing and resource-limited settings. This work presents the design and evaluates the analytical performance of a near-field communication (NFC) potentiostat, a flat card-sized electrochemical device containing a microchip for electrical analysis and an NFC antenna for smartphone connection. The NFC interface is a wireless connection between the microchip and smartphone to simplify measuring units and make the potentiostat into a passive operated device, running without a battery. The proposed potentiostat can perform the common electrochemical techniques including cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry with a current range and voltage range of ±20 µA and ±0.8 V. The performance of the NFC potentiostat is compared to a commercial benchtop potentiostat using ferricyanide as a standard solution. The results show that the NFC potentiostat is comparable to a commercial benchtop potentiostat for both cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry measurements. The application of the proposed potentiostat is demonstrated by measuring ascorbic acid concentration. As described, the NFC potentiostat, which is compatible with a smartphone, is low-cost, small in size and user-friendly. Thus, the device can be developed for on-site measurement to apply in various fields.
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Paper as sampling substrates and all-integrating platforms in potentiometric ion determination. Trends Analyt Chem 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.trac.2020.116070] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
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Park SJ, Jeon DY, Moon YS, Park IH, Kim GT. Web-drive based source measure unit for automated evaluations of ionic liquid-gated MoS 2 transistors. THE REVIEW OF SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS 2019; 90:124708. [PMID: 31893837 DOI: 10.1063/1.5111724] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2019] [Accepted: 12/02/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
For reliable characterization of two-dimensional semiconducting devices and continuous monitoring in toxic environments, construction of an electrical characterization-based massive database using a portable source measure unit (SMU) with a WiFi connection is desirable. The web-drive based SMU using a microcontroller developed here exhibits superior voltage source performance (∼1 mV) and voltage/current measurement (∼0.15 mV/∼1 nA) capabilities, with automatic construction of a measurement database for online storage using web-drive based software, which can be applied for reliable electrical characterization. Electrical characterization of ionic liquid-gated MoS2 transistors was achieved with the designed SMU and showed results comparable with those obtained using a commercial semiconductor characterization system. Ionic liquid-gated transistors only require a small gate bias (∼1.5 V) for on-state operation because of the high gate capacitance originating from the thin dielectric layer constructed of an electrical double layer, which makes the device a promising candidate for low power consumption applications. Finally, several electrical parameters of the ionic liquid-gated transistor were extracted from the datasets and uploaded to the web-drive.
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Affiliation(s)
- So Jeong Park
- School of Electrical Engineering, Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
| | - Dae-Young Jeon
- Institute of Advanced Composite Materials, Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Joellabuk-do 55324, South Korea
| | - Young-Sun Moon
- School of Electrical Engineering, Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
| | - Il-Hoo Park
- School of Electrical Engineering, Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
| | - Gyu-Tae Kim
- School of Electrical Engineering, Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
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Roy S, David-Pur M, Hanein Y. Carbon Nanotube-Based Ion Selective Sensors for Wearable Applications. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2017; 9:35169-35177. [PMID: 28925684 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.7b07346] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Wearable electronics offer new opportunities in a wide range of applications, especially sweat analysis using skin sensors. A fundamental challenge in these applications is the formation of sensitive and stable electrodes. In this article we report the development of a wearable sensor based on carbon nanotube (CNT) electrode arrays for sweat sensing. Solid-state ion selective electrodes (ISEs), sensitive to Na+ ions, were prepared by drop coating plasticized poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) doped with ionophore and ion exchanger on CNT electrodes. The ion selective membrane (ISM) filled the intertubular spaces of the highly porous CNT film and formed an attachment that was stronger than that achieved with flat Au, Pt, or carbon electrodes. Concentration of the ISM solution used influenced the attachment to the CNT film, the ISM surface morphology, and the overall performance of the sensor. Sensitivity of 56 ± 3 mV/decade to Na+ ions was achieved. Optimized solid-state reference electrodes (REs), suitable for wearable applications, were prepared by coating CNT electrodes with colloidal dispersion of Ag/AgCl, agarose hydrogel with 0.5 M NaCl, and a passivation layer of PVC doped with NaCl. The CNT-based REs had low sensitivity (-1.7 ± 1.2 mV/decade) toward the NaCl solution and high repeatability and were superior to bare Ag/AgCl, metals, carbon, and CNT films, reported previously as REs. CNT-based ISEs were calibrated against CNT-based REs, and the short-term stability of the system was tested. We demonstrate that CNT-based devices implemented on a flexible support are a very attractive platform for future wearable technology devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Soumyendu Roy
- School of Electrical Engineering and ‡Tel Aviv University Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Tel Aviv University , Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
| | - Moshe David-Pur
- School of Electrical Engineering and ‡Tel Aviv University Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Tel Aviv University , Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
| | - Yael Hanein
- School of Electrical Engineering and ‡Tel Aviv University Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Tel Aviv University , Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
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Crespo GA. Recent Advances in Ion-selective membrane electrodes for in situ environmental water analysis. Electrochim Acta 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.electacta.2017.05.159] [Citation(s) in RCA: 78] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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Steinberg MD, Kassal P, Steinberg IM. System Architectures in Wearable Electrochemical Sensors. ELECTROANAL 2016. [DOI: 10.1002/elan.201600094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Hupa E, Vanamo U, Bobacka J. Novel Ion-to-Electron Transduction Principle for Solid-Contact ISEs. ELECTROANAL 2015. [DOI: 10.1002/elan.201400596] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
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Miniaturised wireless smart tag for optical chemical analysis applications. Talanta 2014; 118:375-81. [DOI: 10.1016/j.talanta.2013.10.033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2013] [Revised: 10/07/2013] [Accepted: 10/15/2013] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
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Bandodkar AJ, Molinnus D, Mirza O, Guinovart T, Windmiller JR, Valdés-Ramírez G, Andrade FJ, Schöning MJ, Wang J. Epidermal tattoo potentiometric sodium sensors with wireless signal transduction for continuous non-invasive sweat monitoring. Biosens Bioelectron 2013; 54:603-9. [PMID: 24333582 DOI: 10.1016/j.bios.2013.11.039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 243] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2013] [Revised: 11/10/2013] [Accepted: 11/12/2013] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
This article describes the fabrication, characterization and application of an epidermal temporary-transfer tattoo-based potentiometric sensor, coupled with a miniaturized wearable wireless transceiver, for real-time monitoring of sodium in the human perspiration. Sodium excreted during perspiration is an excellent marker for electrolyte imbalance and provides valuable information regarding an individual's physical and mental wellbeing. The realization of the new skin-worn non-invasive tattoo-like sensing device has been realized by amalgamating several state-of-the-art thick film, laser printing, solid-state potentiometry, fluidics and wireless technologies. The resulting tattoo-based potentiometric sodium sensor displays a rapid near-Nernstian response with negligible carryover effects, and good resiliency against various mechanical deformations experienced by the human epidermis. On-body testing of the tattoo sensor coupled to a wireless transceiver during exercise activity demonstrated its ability to continuously monitor sweat sodium dynamics. The real-time sweat sodium concentration was transmitted wirelessly via a body-worn transceiver from the sodium tattoo sensor to a notebook while the subjects perspired on a stationary cycle. The favorable analytical performance along with the wearable nature of the wireless transceiver makes the new epidermal potentiometric sensing system attractive for continuous monitoring the sodium dynamics in human perspiration during diverse activities relevant to the healthcare, fitness, military, healthcare and skin-care domains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amay J Bandodkar
- Department of NanoEngineering, University of California, San Diego La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Denise Molinnus
- Department of NanoEngineering, University of California, San Diego La Jolla, CA 92093, USA; Institute of Nano- and Biotechnologies, Aachen University of Applied Sciences, D-52428 Jülich, Germany
| | - Omar Mirza
- Department of NanoEngineering, University of California, San Diego La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Tomás Guinovart
- Department of NanoEngineering, University of California, San Diego La Jolla, CA 92093, USA; Departamento de Química Analítica, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, 43007 Tarragona, Spain
| | - Joshua R Windmiller
- Department of NanoEngineering, University of California, San Diego La Jolla, CA 92093, USA; Electrozyme LLC, Executive Square (Suite 485), San Diego, CA 92037, USA
| | | | - Francisco J Andrade
- Departamento de Química Analítica, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, 43007 Tarragona, Spain
| | - Michael J Schöning
- Institute of Nano- and Biotechnologies, Aachen University of Applied Sciences, D-52428 Jülich, Germany
| | - Joseph Wang
- Department of NanoEngineering, University of California, San Diego La Jolla, CA 92093, USA.
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