Apparatus for performing a sensing application
First Claim
1. An apparatus for performing a sensing application, said apparatus comprising:
- a reservoir to contain a solution;
a dispenser to dispense the solution from the reservoir;
a substrate having a plurality of nano-fingers positioned to receive the dispensed solution, wherein the plurality of nano-fingers are flexible, such that the plurality of nano-fingers are configurable with respect to each other;
an illumination source to illuminate the received solution, an analyte introduced around the plurality of nano-fingers, and the plurality of nano-fingers, wherein light is to be emitted from the analyte in response to being illuminated; and
a detector to detect the light emitted from the analyte;
wherein the dispenser is to dispense the solution onto a subset of the plurality of nano-fingers, and wherein the plurality of nano-fingers are positioned in sufficiently close proximity to each other to cause the subset of the plurality of nano-fingers to collapse toward each other as the solution evaporates through application of capillary forces onto the plurality of nano-fingers in the subset by the solution.
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Abstract
An apparatus for performing a sensing application includes a reservoir to contain a solution, a dispenser to dispense the solution from the reservoir, and a substrate having a plurality of nano-fingers positioned to receive the dispensed solution, in which the plurality of nano-fingers are flexible, such that the plurality of nano-fingers are configurable with respect to each other. The apparatus also includes an illumination source to illuminate the received solution, an analyte introduced around the plurality of nano-fingers, and the plurality of nano-fingers, in which light is to be emitted from the analyte in response to being illuminated. The apparatus further includes a detector to detect the light emitted from the analyte.
17 Citations
14 Claims
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1. An apparatus for performing a sensing application, said apparatus comprising:
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a reservoir to contain a solution; a dispenser to dispense the solution from the reservoir; a substrate having a plurality of nano-fingers positioned to receive the dispensed solution, wherein the plurality of nano-fingers are flexible, such that the plurality of nano-fingers are configurable with respect to each other; an illumination source to illuminate the received solution, an analyte introduced around the plurality of nano-fingers, and the plurality of nano-fingers, wherein light is to be emitted from the analyte in response to being illuminated; and a detector to detect the light emitted from the analyte; wherein the dispenser is to dispense the solution onto a subset of the plurality of nano-fingers, and wherein the plurality of nano-fingers are positioned in sufficiently close proximity to each other to cause the subset of the plurality of nano-fingers to collapse toward each other as the solution evaporates through application of capillary forces onto the plurality of nano-fingers in the subset by the solution. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A method for performing a sensing application on an analyte introduced onto a plurality of nano-fingers, said method comprising:
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dispensing, from a reservoir, a solution onto the plurality of nano-fingers, wherein Raman-active material nano-particles are attached to respective tips of the plurality of nano-fingers; applying heat onto the solution to cause the solution to evaporate, wherein evaporation of the solution causes tips of adjacent ones of the plurality of nano-fingers to be drawn toward each other through capillary forces applied on the tips by the solution, and wherein molecules of the analyte are at least one of trapped between and positioned adjacent to the Raman-active material nano-particles attached to the respective tips that have been drawn toward each other; illuminating the Raman-active material nano-particles and the analyte to cause enhanced Raman scattered light to be emitted from the analyte; and detecting the enhanced Raman scattered light. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13)
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14. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium on which is stored machine readable instructions, that when executed by a processor are to implement a method for performing a sensing application on an analyte introduced onto a plurality of nano-fingers, said machine readable instructions comprising code to:
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dispense, from a reservoir, a solution onto the plurality of nano-fingers, wherein Raman-active material nano-particles are attached to respective tips of the plurality of nano-fingers; apply heat, by an illumination source, onto the solution to cause the solution to evaporate, wherein evaporation of the solution causes tips of adjacent ones of the plurality of nano-fingers to be drawn toward each other through capillary forces applied on the tips, and wherein molecules of the analyte are at least one of trapped between and positioned adjacent to the Raman-active material nano-particles that are attached to the respective tips that have been drawn toward each other; illuminate, by the illumination source, the Raman-active material nano-particles and the analyte to cause Raman scattered light to be emitted from the analyte; detect, by a detector, the Raman scattered light; convert the detected Raman scattered light into electrical signals; and communicate the electrical signals to a destination receiver.
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Specification