Assay stick

• US 20040126875A1
• Filed: 09/12/2003
• Published: 07/01/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 09/12/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Illumina Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Illumina Incorporated
• Inventors: Li, Tuo, Putnam, Martin A., Moon, John
• Application Number:
  US10/661,115
• Publication Number:
  US 20040126875A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 435/287.2
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00459 Beads
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00463 Directed sorting
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/0047 Pins
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/005 Beads
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00547 Bar codes
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00576 fluorophore
• CPC Class Codes: B01J 2219/00702 Processes involving means for analysing and characterising the products
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2200/0636 Focussing flows, e.g. to laminate flows
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2200/0668 Trapping microscopic beads
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0654 Lenses; Optical fibres
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0409 centrifugal forces
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0457 passive flow or gravitation
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2400/0487 fluid pressure, pneumatics
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/502761 specially adapted for handling suspended solids or molecules independently from the bulk fluid flow, e.g. for trapping or sorting beads, for physically stretching molecules investigating characteristics of particles G01N15/00
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/5085 for multiple samples, e.g. microtitration plates
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 1/0272 Substrate bearing the hologram
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 2210/53 Coded object not directly interpretable, e.g. encrypted object, barcode
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 2230/10 Microhologram not registered to the substrate
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 2270/20 Shape
• CPC Class Codes: G03H 2270/24 Having particular size, e.g. microscopic

Abstract

An assay stick 7 includes a transparent reaction vessel or tube 14 having one or more microbeads 8 disposed therein. The microbeads 8 have a plurality of unique identification digital codes based on a diffraction grating 12 disposed therein that are detected when illuminated by incident light 24. The incident light 24 may be directed transversely onto the side or onto an end of the tube 14 with a narrow band (single wavelength) or multiple wavelength source, in which case the code is represented by a spatial distribution of light or a wavelength spectrum, respectively. The assay stick 7 may be reused or disposed upon completion of the assay. Instead of beads, cells or molecules may be spotted or grown directly on the tube.

Claims

1. An assay stick, comprising:

a reaction vessel;

a plurality of microbeads disposed within said reaction vessel;

each of said microbeads having at least one diffraction grating disposed therein, said grating having at least one refractive index pitch superimposed at a common location;

said grating providing an output optical signal when illuminated by an incident light signal; and

said optical output signal being indicative of a code in said substrate.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said vessel is made of a glass material.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said vessel is a tube.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said code comprises a plurality of bits.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the number of pitches is indicative of the number of said bits in said code.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said beads have a length that is less than about 500 microns.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said beads have a cylindrical shape.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said grating is a blazed grating.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said code comprises a plurality of bits, each bit having a plurality of states.

10. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said substrate has a reflective coating disposed thereon.

11. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said substrate is has a magnetic or electric charge polarization.

12. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said substrate has a grating region where said grating and a non-grating region where said grating is not located;

and wherein said substrate has a plurality of grating regions.

13. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said substrate has geometry having holes therein.

14. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said substrate is has a geometry having protruding sections.

15. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein at least a portion of said substrate is has an end cross sectional geometry selected from the group:

circular, square, rectangular, elliptical, clam-shell, D-shaped, and polygon

16. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein at least a portion of said substrate is has a side view geometry selected from the group:

circular, square, rectangular, elliptical, clam-shell, D-shaped, and polygon.

17. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein at least a portion of said substrate is has a 3-D shape selected from the group:

sphere, a cube, a pyramid.

18. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said code comprises at least a predetermined number of bits, said number being:

3, 5, 7, 9, 10, 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 24, 28, 30, 40, 50, or 100.

19. A method of performing an assay, comprising:

obtaining a reaction vessel having a plurality of microbeads disposed therein;

each of said microbeads having at least one diffraction grating disposed therein, said grating having at least one refractive index pitch superimposed at a common location;

said grating providing an output optical signal when illuminated by an incident light signal; and

said optical output signal being indicative of a code in said substrate.

20. A method of reading a code in an optical identification element, comprising:

obtaining an optical substrate at least a portion of which having a diffraction grating with one or more refractive index pitches superimposed at a common location; and

illuminating said substrate with incident light, said substrate providing an output light signal;

reading said output light signal and detecting a code therefrom.