ELECTROCHEMICAL SENSOR AND METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING

• US 20110189762A1
• Filed: 08/28/2008
• Published: 08/04/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/30/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Pepex Biomedical, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Pepex Biomedical, LLC
• Inventors: Say, James L.
• Granted Patent: US 8,702,932 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 435/287.1
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 27/327 Biochemical electrodes , e.g. electrical or mechanical details for in vitro measurements
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 27/3272 Test elements therefor, i.e. disposable laminated substrates with electrodes, reagent and channels optical biosensors G01N33/52
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 27/3275 Sensing specific biomolecules, e.g. nucleic acid strands, based on an electrode surface reaction

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a sensor including an elongated member including at least a portion that is electrically conductive. The elongated member includes a sensing layer adapted to react with a material desired to be sensed. An insulating layer surrounds the elongated member. The insulating layer defines at least one access opening for allowing the material desired to be sensed to enter an interior region defined between the elongated member and the insulating layer. The insulating layer has an inner transverse cross-sectional profile that is different from an outer transverse cross-sectional profile of the elongated member. The difference in transverse cross-sectional profiles between the elongated member and the insulating layer provides channels at the interior region defined between the insulating layer and the elongated member. The channels extend generally along the length of the elongated member and are sized to allow the material desired to be sensed to move along the length of the sensor.

Claims

1-30. -30. (canceled)

31. A sensor comprising:

an elongated member including a dielectric core surrounded at least partially by an electrically conductive layer that forms a working electrode;

a sensing chemistry positioned adjacent to the electrically conductive layer;

an insulating layer at least partially enclosing the elongated member and the sensing chemistry; and

channels defined between the insulating layer and the sensing chemistry, the channels extending at least partially along a length of the elongated member.

32. The sensor of claim 31, wherein the elongated member has a diameter less than 0.02 inches.

33. The sensor of claim 31, wherein the elongated member includes a fiber.

34. The sensor of claim 33, wherein the fiber includes a composite monofilament thread material made conductive by a suffusion of the conductive layer on the dielectric core.

35. The sensor of claim 31, wherein the sensing chemistry includes a redox compound.

36. The sensor of claim 35, wherein the redox compound includes a transition metal complex with an organic ligand.

37. The sensor of claim 35, wherein the sensing chemistry includes a redox enzyme.

38. The sensor of claim 37, wherein the redox enzyme includes glucose oxidase, glucose dehydrogenase, lactate oxidase, or lactate dehydrogenase.

39. The sensor of claim 31, wherein the sensing chemistry includes a sensing layer that covers at least a portion of the conductive layer.

40. The sensor of claim 31, wherein the sensor includes a sensing tip defining an opening in the insulating layer for allowing a material to be analyzed to enter an interior of the insulating layer.

41. The sensor of claim 31, wherein the insulating layer defines an opening for allowing a material to be analyzed to reach the sensing layer.

42. The sensor of claim 31, further comprising a counter electrode carried by the insulating layer.

43. The sensor of claim 31, wherein the insulating layer has an inner cross-sectional shape that is different from an outer cross-sectional shape of the elongated member.

44. The sensor of claim 43, wherein the inner cross-sectional shape of the insulating layer is circular and the outer cross-sectional shape of the elongated member is triangular.

45. The sensor of claim 31, wherein first and second separate working electrodes are provided on the elongated member.

46. The sensor of claim 45, wherein first and second different sensing chemistries are provided on the first and second working electrodes.

47. The sensor of claim 45, wherein the elongated member includes a plurality of discrete sides, wherein the plurality of discrete sides include at least first and second sides, and wherein the first working electrode is positioned at the first side and the second working electrode is positioned at the second side.

48. A sensor comprising:

an elongated member including at least a portion that is electrically conductive, the elongated member including a sensing material adapted to react with a material to be analyzed; and

an insulating layer that surrounds the elongated member, the insulating layer defining at least one access opening for allowing the material to analyzed to enter an interior region defined between the elongated member and the insulating layer, the insulating layer having an inner transverse cross-sectional profile that is different from an outer transverse cross-sectional profile of the elongated member, the difference in transverse cross-sectional profiles between the elongated member and the insulating layer providing channels at the interior region defined between the insulating layer and the elongated member, the channels extending generally along a length of the elongated member.

49. The sensor of claim 48, further comprising a stop arrangement for limiting a distance a sample fluid can flow along lengths of the channels.

50. The sensor of claim 48, wherein the sensing material is configured to be hydrated by the analyte as the analyte diffuses into the sensing layer along a length of the channels.