One-Step Fabrication of Paper-Based Inkjet-Printed Graphene for Breath Monitor Sensors.

Irregularities in breathing patterns can be detected using breath monitor sensors, and this help clinicians to predict health disorders ranging from sleep disorders to heart failures. Variations in humidity during the inhalation and exhalation of breath have been utilized as a marker to detect breath patterns, and graphene-based devices are the favored sensing media for relative humidity (RH). In general, most graphene-based RH sensors have been used to explore resistance change as a measurement parameter to calibrate against the RH value, and they are prone to noise interference. Here, we fabricated RH sensors using graphene ink as a sensing medium and printed them in the shape of interdigital electrodes on glossy paper using an office inkjet printer. Further, we investigated the capacitance change in the sensor for the RH changes in the range of 10-70%. It exhibited excellent sensitivity with 0.03 pF/% RH, good stability, and high intraday and interday repeatability, with relative standard deviations of 1.2% and 2.2%, respectively. Finally, the sensor was embedded into a face mask and interfaced with a microcontroller, and capacitance change was measured under three different breathing situations: normal breathing, deep breathing, and coughing. The result show that the dominant frequency for normal breath is 0.22 Hz, for deep breath, it is 0.11 Hz, and there was no significant dominant cough frequency due to persistent coughing and inconsistent patterns. Moreover, the sensor exhibited a short response and recovery time (<5 s) during inhalation and exhalation. Thus, the proposed paper-based RH sensor is promising wearable and disposable healthcare technology for clinical and home care health applications.

Emerging Biosensors to Detect Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2): A Review.

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is a global health crisis caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) is the gold standard test for diagnosing COVID-19. Although it is highly accurate, this lab test requires highly-trained personnel and the turn-around time is long. Rapid and inexpensive immuno-diagnostic tests (antigen or antibody test) are available, but these point of care (POC) tests are not as accurate as the RT-PCR test. Biosensors are promising alternatives to these rapid POC tests. Here we review three types of recently developed biosensors for SARS-CoV-2 detection: surface plasmon resonance (SPR)-based, electrochemical and field-effect transistor (FET)-based biosensors. We explain the sensing principles and discuss the advantages and limitations of these sensors. The accuracies of these sensors need to be improved before they could be translated into POC devices for commercial use. We suggest potential biorecognition elements with highly selective target-analyte binding that could be explored to increase the true negative detection rate. To increase the true positive detection rate, we suggest two-dimensional materials and nanomaterials that could be used to modify the sensor surface to increase the sensitivity of the sensor.

A Langasite Crystal Microbalance Coated with Graphene Oxide-Platinum Nanocomposite as a Volatile Organic Compound Sensor: Detection and Discrimination Characteristics.

We propose a novel langasite crystal microbalance (LCM) sensor with a graphene-based sensing medium to detect and discriminate volatile organic compounds (VOCs) at room temperature. A thin film of graphene oxide embedded with Pt nanostructures (GO-Pt nanocomposite) was deposited on the electrode surface of the LCM, a thickness-shear acoustic wave resonator. Ethyl acetate, acetic acid, and ethanol were chosen as typical VOCs for this study. Sensitivity and selectivity of coated LCM were investigated for different concentrations of the VOCs by analysing the resonant properties of the sensor. When exposed to VOCs, a negative shift in series resonance frequency was observed due to the mass loading of VOC molecules. Simultaneously, changes in equivalent resistance and parallel resonance frequency of the sensor were also observed due to the interaction of VOCs with charge carriers on the GO-Pt nanocomposite film surface. This dual measurement of both series and parallel resonance frequencies allowed for detection and discrimination of VOCs. Moreover, the high thermal stability of langasite makes the proposed sensor suitable even for harsh environmental conditions.

Modeling and Electrode Design Optimizations of Plano-Plano Langasite Crystal Resonator.

The 3-D finite-element model (FEM) of a Y-cut plano-plano langasite crystal thickness shear mode (TSM) resonator is presented, and Mindlin's theory is used to investigate the optimal electrode shapes and sizes for langasite crystal resonator. Circular and elliptical electrodes of various arc lengths are studied to identify the most optimal electrode design configuration in order to achieve TSM vibration free from any anharmonic modes. Simulation results show that resonators with elliptical electrodes have noticeably better suppression of spurious modes compared to that of circular electrodes. Moreover, spurious mode suppression is accomplished for multiple electrode sizes for the same shape, which greatly differs from Mindlin's theory. Hence, three optimized designs are shortlisted and their mass loading sensitivities are investigated. Circular and elliptical electrodes of the same area show similar responses to added mass, indicating that elliptical electrodes have no apparent advantage over circular electrode in mass sensing applications.