Sensor arrays for detecting analytes in fluids
First Claim
1. A sensor array for detecting an analyte in a fluid comprising first and second sensors electrically connected to an electrical measuring apparatus, each of said sensors comprising:
- regions of nonconductive organic material and conductive material compositionally different than said nonconductive organic material; and
an electrical path through said regions of nonconductive organic material and said conductive material.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Chemical sensors for detecting analytes in fluids comprise first and second conductive elements (e.g. electrical leads) electrically coupled to and separated by a chemically sensitive resistor which provides an electrical path between the conductive elements. The resistor comprises a plurality of alternating nonconductive regions (comprising a nonconductive organic polymer) and conductive regions (comprising a conductive material) transverse to the electrical path. The resistor provides a difference in resistance between the conductive elements when contacted with a fluid comprising a chemical analyte at a first concentration, than when contacted with a fluid comprising the chemical analyte at a second different concentration. Arrays of such sensors are constructed with at least two sensors having different chemically sensitive resistors providing dissimilar such differences in resistance. Variability in chemical sensitivity from sensor to sensor is provided by qualitatively or quantitatively varying the composition of the conductive and/or nonconductive regions. An electronic nose for detecting an analyte in a fluid may be constructed by using such arrays in conjunction with an electrical measuring device electrically connected to the conductive elements of each sensor.
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Citations
28 Claims
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1. A sensor array for detecting an analyte in a fluid comprising first and second sensors electrically connected to an electrical measuring apparatus, each of said sensors comprising:
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regions of nonconductive organic material and conductive material compositionally different than said nonconductive organic material; and an electrical path through said regions of nonconductive organic material and said conductive material. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
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25. A method for detecting the presence of an analyte in a fluid, comprising the steps of:
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providing a sensor array comprising first and second sensors, each sensor comprising regions of nonconductive organic material and conductive material compositionally different than said nonconductive material, and an electrical path through said regions of said nonconductive organic material and said conductive material; exposing the first sensor and the second sensor to the fluid; measuring a first resistance that occurs when the first sensor is permeated by the fluid; measuring a second resistance that occurs when the second sensor is permeated by the fluid; comparing the first measured resistance to the first resistance response to permeation by the analyte to generate a first indicator which indicates the presence or absence of the analyte in the fluid; and comparing the second measured resistance to the second resistance response to the permeation by the analyte to generate a second indicator which indicates the presence or absence of the analyte in the fluid. - View Dependent Claims (26, 27, 28)
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Specification