A sensor is a device that produces an output signal for the purpose of detecting a physical phenomenon.
A biosensor is an analytical device, used for the detection of a chemical substance, that combines a biological component with a physicochemical detector. The sensitive biological element, e.g. tissue, microorganisms, organelles, cell receptors, enzymes, antibodies, nucleic acids, etc., is a biologically derived material or biomimetic component that interacts with, binds with, or recognizes the analyte under study. The biologically sensitive elements can also be created by biological engineering. The transducer or the detector element, which transforms one signal into another one, works in a physicochemical way: optical, piezoelectric, electrochemical, electrochemiluminescence etc., resulting from the interaction of the analyte with the biological element, to easily measure and quantify. The biosensor reader device connects with the associated electronics or signal processors that are primarily responsible for the display of the results in a user-friendly way. This sometimes accounts for the most expensive part of the sensor device, however it is possible to generate a user friendly display that includes transducer and sensitive element. The readers are usually custom-designed and manufactured to suit the different working principles of biosensors.
Nanosensors are nanoscale devices that measure physical quantities and convert these to signals that can be detected and analyzed. There are several ways proposed today to make nanosensors; these include top-down lithography, bottom-up assembly, and molecular self-assembly. There are different types of nanosensors in the market and in development for various applications, most notably in defense, environmental, and healthcare industries. These sensors share the same basic workflow: a selective binding of an analyte, signal generation from the interaction of the nanosensor with the bio-element, and processing of the signal into useful metrics.
A wetware computer is an organic computer composed of organic material "wetware" such as "living" neurons. Wetware computers composed of neurons are different than conventional computers because they use biological materials, and offer the possibility of substantially more energy-efficient computing. While a wetware computer is still largely conceptual, there has been limited success with construction and prototyping, which has acted as a proof of the concept's realistic application to computing in the future. The most notable prototypes have stemmed from the research completed by biological engineer William Ditto during his time at the Georgia Institute of Technology. His work constructing a simple neurocomputer capable of basic addition from leech neurons in 1999 was a significant discovery for the concept. This research was a primary example driving interest in creating these artificially constructed, but still organic brains.
Rahul Sarpeshkar is the Thomas E. Kurtz Professor and a professor of engineering, professor of physics, professor of microbiology & immunology, and professor of molecular and systems biology at Dartmouth. Sarpeshkar, whose interdisciplinary work is in bioengineering, electrical engineering, quantum physics, and biophysics, is the inaugural chair of the William H. Neukom cluster of computational science, which focuses on analog, quantum, and biological computation. The clusters, designed by faculty from across the institution to address major global challenges, are part of President Philip Hanlon's vision for strengthening academic excellence at Dartmouth. Prior to Dartmouth, Sarpeshkar was a tenured professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and led the Analog Circuits and Biological Systems Group. He is now also a visiting scientist at MIT's Research Laboratory of Electronics.
Microbial fuel cell (MFC) is a type of bioelectrochemical fuel cell system also known as micro fuel cell that generates electric current by diverting electrons produced from the microbial oxidation of reduced compounds on the anode to oxidized compounds such as oxygen on the cathode through an external electrical circuit. MFCs produce electricity by using the electrons derived from biochemical reactions catalyzed by bacteria. Comprehensive Biotechnology MFCs can be grouped into two general categories: mediated and unmediated. The first MFCs, demonstrated in the early 20th century, used a mediator: a chemical that transfers electrons from the bacteria in the cell to the anode. Unmediated MFCs emerged in the 1970s; in this type of MFC the bacteria typically have electrochemically active redox proteins such as cytochromes on their outer membrane that can transfer electrons directly to the anode. In the 21st century MFCs have started to find commercial use in wastewater treatment.
A paper battery is engineered to use a spacer formed largely of cellulose. It incorporates nanoscopic scale structures to act as high surface-area electrodes to improve conductivity.
A biointerface is the region of contact between a biomolecule, cell, biological tissue or living organism or organic material considered living with another biomaterial or inorganic/organic material. The motivation for biointerface science stems from the urgent need to increase the understanding of interactions between biomolecules and surfaces. The behavior of complex macromolecular systems at materials interfaces are important in the fields of biology, biotechnology, diagnostics, and medicine. Biointerface science is a multidisciplinary field in which biochemists who synthesize novel classes of biomolecules cooperate with scientists who have developed the tools to position biomolecules with molecular precision, scientists who have developed new spectroscopic techniques to interrogate these molecules at the solid-liquid interface, and people who integrate these into functional devices. Well-designed biointerfaces would facilitate desirable interactions by providing optimized surfaces where biological matter can interact with other inorganic or organic materials, such as by promoting cell and tissue adhesion onto a surface.
Electronic textiles or e-textiles are fabrics that enable electronic components such as batteries, lights, sensors, and microcontrollers to be embedded in them. Many smart clothing, wearable technology, and wearable computing projects involve the use of e-textiles.
Joseph Wang is an American biomedical engineer and inventor. He is a Distinguished Professor, SAIC Endowed Chair, and former Chair of the Department of Nanoengineering at the University of California, San Diego, who specialized in nanomachines, biosensors, nano-bioelectronics, wearable devices, and electrochemistry. He is also the Director of the UCSD Center of Wearable Sensors and co-director of the UCSD Center of Mobile Health Systems and Applications (CMSA).
Anthony "Tony" Guiseppi-Elie is a Trinidad-born, American scientist, engineer, entrepreneur, and avid Wikipedia editor. He is the President and Sr. Fellow of the American International Institute of Medical Sciences, Engineering and Innovation and the President and Scientific director of ABTECH Scientific, Inc. He is noted for his research and commercial development of biologically inspired and chemically responsive electroconductive hydrogels. Guiseppi-Elie is the Founding Editor-in-Chief of the transdisciplinary journal Bioengineering.
Biosensors and Bioelectronics is a peer-reviewed scientific journal published by Elsevier. It covers research on biosensors and bioelectronics. The journal was established in 1985 as Biosensors and obtained its current name in 1991. The journal was established by I. John Higgins, W. Geoff Potter and Anthony P.F. Turner, who became editor-in-chief, until his retirement in 2019. The current Editors in Chief are Chenzhong Li, Arben Merkoçi, and Man Bock Gu.
The organic electrochemical transistor (OECT) is an organic electronic device which functions like a transistor. The current flowing through the device is controlled by the exchange of ions between an electrolyte and the OECT channel composed of an organic conductor or semiconductor. The exchange of ions is driven by a voltage applied to the gate electrode which is in ionic contact with the channel through the electrolyte. The migration of ions between the channel and the electrolyte is accompanied by electrochemical redox reactions occurring in the channel material. The electrochemical redox of the channel along with ion migration changes the conductivity of the channel in a process called electrochemical doping. OECTs are being explored for applications in biosensors, bioelectronics and large-area, low-cost electronics. OECTs can also be used as multi-bit memory devices that mimic the synaptic functionalities of the brain. For this reason, OECTs can be also being investigated as elements in neuromorphic computing applications.
A field-effect transistor-based biosensor, also known as a biosensor field-effect transistor, field-effect biosensor (FEB), or biosensor MOSFET, is a field-effect transistor that is gated by changes in the surface potential induced by the binding of molecules. When charged molecules, such as biomolecules, bind to the FET gate, which is usually a dielectric material, they can change the charge distribution of the underlying semiconductor material resulting in a change in conductance of the FET channel. A Bio-FET consists of two main compartments: one is the biological recognition element and the other is the field-effect transistor. The BioFET structure is largely based on the ion-sensitive field-effect transistor (ISFET), a type of metal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET) where the metal gate is replaced by an ion-sensitive membrane, electrolyte solution, and reference electrode.
Róisín Owens is a professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, University of Cambridge and a Fellow of Newnham College, Cambridge. Her research investigates new engineering technology for biological applications with a focus on organic bioelectronics, developing electroactive materials that can be used between physical transducers and soft biological tissues.
Carlotta Guiducci is an Italian bio-engineer. Her research is invested in bio-molecular analysis based on lab-on-a-chip devices. She is an Associate Professor at EPFL and head of the Laboratory of Life Sciences Electronics located at EPFL's Lausanne campus.
Sahika Inal is a Turkish scientist who is an associate professor and Chair of the Organic Bioelectronics Laboratory at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology. She is interested in the use of organic electronic materials for monitoring health, and the design of biocompatible devices that can interface with the human body. In 2021, she was shortlisted for the Nature Portfolio Scientific Achievement award.
Chi Hwan Lee is an American biomedical engineer, academic, and researcher. He is the Leslie A. Geddes Professor of Biomedical Engineering and mechanical engineering, and by courtesy, of materials engineering, Electrical and Computer Engineering, and speech, language, and hearing sciences at Purdue University.
Dr. Shalini Prasad is a biological engineer, Cecil H. and Ida Green Professor of Systems Biology Science, and head of the Bioengineering Department at The University of Texas at Dallas. She was elected to the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering College of Fellows in February 2022 "for pioneering contributions in engineering sweat wearables for disease tracking and management for chronic diseases and prognostic monitoring in pandemics." Dr. Shalini Prasad has had a number of faculty positions at many universities. She is the co-founder of a small technology company called EnLiSense LLC. And her research consists of developing technology to monitor individuals to benefit the health industry.
