Sensor arrangement and method for operating a sensor arrangement

• US 20060057025A1
• Filed: 10/14/2003
• Published: 03/16/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 10/14/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Infineon Technologies AG
• Original Assignee: Infineon Technologies AG
• Inventors: Thewes, Roland, Paulus, Christian, Eversmann, Bjorn-Oliver
• Granted Patent: US 7,662,341 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 422/82.20
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 27/4145 specially adapted for biomolecules, e.g. gate electrode with immobilised receptors
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/48728 Investigating individual cells, e.g. by patch clamp, voltage clamp investigating individual particles in general G01N15/10

Abstract

A sensor arrangement and method of operating the sensor arrangement are described. The sensor arrangement has sensor devices formed on or in a substrate and a calibration device for calibrating a respective sensor device. Each sensor device has an electrical signal converter which is a field-effect transistor (FET) having a gate terminal coupled to a sensor element that is coupled to the signal converter, a device that keeps constant the electrical voltage between source and drain terminals of the FET, and a device for detecting the value of the electric current flowing through the signal converter. The sensor element characteristically influences the electrical conductivity of the signal converter on account of a sensor event on the sensor element. The calibration device brings the gate region of the FET to an electrical calibration potential such that the electric current is independent of parameter fluctuations of the FET.

Claims

1. A sensor arrangement having a plurality of sensor devices formed at least one of on or in a substrate, each of the sensor devices having:

an electrical signal converter;

a sensor element coupled to the signal converter, in which the sensor element can be used to characteristically influence the electrical conductivity of the signal converter on account of a sensor event on the sensor element;

a device for keeping constant an electrical voltage present at the signal converter; and

a device for detecting the value of the electric current flowing through the signal converter as a sensor signal,

wherein the electrical signal converter is a field-effect transistor having a gate terminal coupled to the sensor element, the device for keeping constant an electrical voltage keeps constant the electrical voltage between source and drain terminals of the field-effect transistor; and

the sensor arrangement further comprises a calibration device for calibrating a respective sensor device, the calibration device usable to bring a gate region of the field-effect transistor to an electrical calibration potential such that the electric current is independent of parameter fluctuations of the field-effect transistor.

4. The sensor arrangement as claimed in claim 1, further comprising an evaluation unit, which is provided with the value of the electric current as sensor signal.

5. The sensor arrangement as claimed in claim 4, in which the evaluation unit forms, from the value of the electric current, an electrical voltage characteristic of the value or maps the value of the electric current onto a digitally coded value that characterizes the value of the electric current.

6. The sensor arrangement as claimed in claim 5, in which the evaluation unit has an operational amplifier comprising:

a first input, to which the sensor signal can be applied;

a second input, to which an electrical reference potential can be applied; and

an output, at which the characteristic electrical voltage is provided;

the first input and the output being coupled to one another by means of a nonreactive resistor.

7. The sensor arrangement as claimed in claim 1, configured as a biosensor arrangement.

9. The sensor arrangement as claimed in claim 1, in which the calibration device is set up such that an electric calibration current can be applied to the gate terminal and to one of the source and drain terminal of the field-effect transistor for calibration purposes.

10. The sensor arrangement as claimed in claim 4, in which the evaluation unit has a correlated double sampling device, which forms, in the case of a sensor event, a value of the electric current that is independent of parameter fluctuations of the field-effect transistor.

11. The sensor arrangement as claimed in claim 10, in which the correlated double sampling device is set up such that, by means of the correlated double sampling device:

in a calibration phase, a gate region of the field-effect transistor is brought to an electrical calibration potential and the associated value of the electric current is detected as a calibration signal and stored;

in a detection phase, the value of the electric current on account of a sensor event is detected as a sensor signal;

in an evaluation phase, the sensor signal and the calibration signal are evaluated jointly.

12. The sensor arrangement as claimed in claim 1, in which the sensor devices are arranged essentially in matrix form at least one of on or in the substrate and are connected up by means of row and column lines such that the sensor devices can be driven individually, row by row or column by column.

13. The sensor arrangement as claimed in claim 12, in which at least one evaluation unit, at least one of:

at least one calibration device or at least one correlated double sampling device is provided jointly for at least a portion of the sensor devices of a row line or a column line.

2-3. -3. (canceled)

8. (canceled)

14. A method for operating a sensor arrangement:

with a sensor arrangement having a plurality of sensor devices formed at least one of on or in a substrate, each of the sensor devices having;

an electrical signal converter;

a sensor element coupled to the signal converter, in which the sensor element can be used to characteristically influence the electrical conductivity of the signal converter on account of a sensor event on the sensor element;

a device for keeping constant an electrical voltage present at the signal converter;

a device for detecting the value of the electric current flowing through the signal converter as a sensor signal, wherein the electrical signal converter is a field effect transistor having a gate terminal coupled to the sensor element, the device for keeping constant an electrical voltage keeps constant the electrical voltage between source and drain terminals of the field-effect transistor;

in which case, in accordance with the method,

the electrical conductivity of the signal converter is characteristically influenced on account of a sensor event on the sensor element;

the electrical voltage at the signal converter is kept constant;

the electric current flowing through the signal converter is detected as sensor signal; and

in which at least a portion of the sensor devices is calibrated by a gate region of the respective field-effect transistor being brought to an electrical calibration potential such that the value of the electric current in the case of a sensor event is independent of parameter fluctuations of the field-effect transistor.

17. The method as claimed in claim 14, in which a value of the electric current that is independent of parameter fluctuations of the field-effect transistor is formed using a correlated double sampling method in the case of a sensor event.

15-16. -16. (canceled)