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Optofluidic Sensors

A special issue of Sensors (ISSN 1424-8220). This special issue belongs to the section "Optical Sensors".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 October 2024 | Viewed by 3685

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Laboratoire Lumière, Matière et Interfaces (MuMIn), 91191 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
Interests: nonlinear optics; optical communications and sensors; optical signal processing; ultra-sensitive opto-fluidic sensors; nanoplasmonics; polymer-based photonic structures and applications; non-linear nanophotonics and biophotonics

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In recent years, optofluidics, which intimately associates fluid mechanics and photonics, especially at the micro- and nanoscale, has widely developed towards diverse applications in biochemistry, catalysis, cell manipulation, and chemical or biological sensing. Optofluidic sensors display extreme sensitivities in tiny analyte volumes and allow real-time analysis within a lab-on-a-chip approach.

This Special Issue will report on the most recent advances in optofluidics from a photonics perspective and will address diverse aspects ranging from the control of the photonic device performance to its integration within appropriate fluidic circuits. Various optical light–matter interactions can be addressed: fluorescence- or laser-based versus label-free detection processes, surface-enhanced spectroscopy, optical fibers, waveguides and microresonators, photonic crystal structures, and plasmonics and nanoplasmonics. The relevance of the choice of optical material (silicon, inorganic or organic dielectrics, metallic or hybrid nanomaterials, metasurfaces) will be discussed in relation to its adequacy with the target application and considering the cost and complexity of the fabrication technologies. Special attention should be paid to optoelectronic integration and miniaturization, fast-response and low-cost devices, and their application potential in the domain of environmental investigation (detection or chemical or biological pollutants) and biomedicine, in particular DNA and antibody recognition, and bacteria or virus detection.

Prof. Dr. Isabelle Ledoux-Rak
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • optics
  • microfluidics
  • integration
  • microtechnology
  • nanotechnology
  • lab-on-chip
  • fabrication

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

12 pages, 4199 KiB  
Article
Analysis of Fluid Replacement in Two Fluidic Chambers for Oblique–Incidence Reflectivity Difference (OI-RD) Biosensor
by Haofeng Li, Mengjing Xu, Xiaohan Mai, Hang Zhang, Xiangdong Zhu, Lan Mi, Jiong Ma and Yiyan Fei
Sensors 2024, 24(6), 2000; https://doi.org/10.3390/s24062000 - 21 Mar 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 662
Abstract
Optical biosensors have a significant impact on various aspects of our lives. In many applications of optical biosensors, fluidic chambers play a crucial role in facilitating controlled fluid delivery. It is essential to achieve complete liquid replacement in order to obtain accurate and [...] Read more.
Optical biosensors have a significant impact on various aspects of our lives. In many applications of optical biosensors, fluidic chambers play a crucial role in facilitating controlled fluid delivery. It is essential to achieve complete liquid replacement in order to obtain accurate and reliable results. However, the configurations of fluidic chambers vary across different optical biosensors, resulting in diverse fluidic volumes and flow rates, and there are no standardized guidelines for liquid replacement. In this paper, we utilize COMSOL Multiphysics, a finite element analysis software, to investigate the optimal fluid volume required for two types of fluidic chambers in the context of the oblique–incidence reflectivity difference (OI-RD) biosensor. We found that the depth of the fluidic chamber is the most crucial factor influencing the required liquid volume, with the volume being a quadratic function of the depth. Additionally, the required fluid volume is also influenced by the positions on the substrate surface bearing samples, while the flow rate has no impact on the fluid volume. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Optofluidic Sensors)
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13 pages, 5425 KiB  
Article
Optofluidic Flow Cytometer with In-Plane Spherical Mirror for Signal Enhancement
by Filippo Zorzi, Silvio Bonfadini, Ludovico Aloisio, Matteo Moschetta, Filippo Storti, Francesco Simoni, Guglielmo Lanzani and Luigino Criante
Sensors 2023, 23(22), 9191; https://doi.org/10.3390/s23229191 - 15 Nov 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1277
Abstract
Statistical analysis of the properties of single microparticles, such as cells, bacteria or plastic slivers, has attracted increasing interest in recent years. In this regard, field flow cytometry is considered the gold standard technique, but commercially available instruments are bulky, expensive, and not [...] Read more.
Statistical analysis of the properties of single microparticles, such as cells, bacteria or plastic slivers, has attracted increasing interest in recent years. In this regard, field flow cytometry is considered the gold standard technique, but commercially available instruments are bulky, expensive, and not suitable for use in point-of-care (PoC) testing. Microfluidic flow cytometers, on the other hand, are small, cheap and can be used for on-site analyses. However, in order to detect small particles, they require complex geometries and the aid of external optical components. To overcome these limitations, here, we present an opto-fluidic flow cytometer with an integrated 3D in-plane spherical mirror for enhanced optical signal collection. As a result, the signal-to-noise ratio is increased by a factor of six, enabling the detection of particle sizes down to 1.5 µm. The proposed optofluidic detection scheme enables the simultaneous collection of particle fluorescence and scattering using a single optical fiber, which is crucial to easily distinguishing particle populations with different optical properties. The devices have been fully characterized using fluorescent polystyrene beads of different sizes. As a proof of concept for potential real-world applications, signals from fluorescent HEK cells and Escherichia coli bacteria were analyzed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Optofluidic Sensors)
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21 pages, 6272 KiB  
Article
Optofluidic Sensor Based on Polymer Optical Microresonators for the Specific, Sensitive and Fast Detection of Chemical and Biochemical Species
by Nolwenn-Amandine Keriel, Camille Delezoide, David Chauvin, Hafsa Korri-Youssoufi, Ngoc Diep Lai, Isabelle Ledoux-Rak and Chi-Thanh Nguyen
Sensors 2023, 23(17), 7373; https://doi.org/10.3390/s23177373 - 24 Aug 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1124
Abstract
The accurate, rapid, and specific detection of DNA strands in solution is becoming increasingly important, especially in biomedical applications such as the trace detection of COVID-19 or cancer diagnosis. In this work we present the design, elaboration and characterization of an optofluidic sensor [...] Read more.
The accurate, rapid, and specific detection of DNA strands in solution is becoming increasingly important, especially in biomedical applications such as the trace detection of COVID-19 or cancer diagnosis. In this work we present the design, elaboration and characterization of an optofluidic sensor based on a polymer-based microresonator which shows a quick response time, a low detection limit and good sensitivity. The device is composed of a micro-racetrack waveguide vertically coupled to a bus waveguide and embedded within a microfluidic circuit. The spectral response of the microresonator, in air or immersed in deionised water, shows quality factors up to 72,900 and contrasts up to 0.9. The concentration of DNA strands in water is related to the spectral shift of the microresonator transmission function, as measured at the inflection points of resonance peaks in order to optimize the signal-over-noise ratio. After functionalization by a DNA probe strand on the surface of the microresonator, a specific and real time measurement of the complementary DNA strands in the solution is realized. Additionally, we have inferred the dissociation constant value of the binding equilibrium of the two complementary DNA strands and evidenced a sensitivity of 16.0 pm/µM and a detection limit of 121 nM. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Optofluidic Sensors)
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