Characterization of a 1024 × 1024 DG-BioFET platform

Authors: DUARTE-GUEVARA, CARLOS - University Of Illinois; SWAMINATHAN, VIKHRAM - University Of Illinois; REDDY JR, BOBBY - University Of Illinois; WEN, CHIN HUA - National Chaio Tung University; HUANG, YU JIE - National Chaio Tung University; HUANG, JUI CHENG - National Chaio Tung University; LIU, YI SHAO - Delta G; BASHIR, RASHID - Indiana University-Purdue University

Submitted to: Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/17/2017
Publication Date: 4/21/2017
Citation: Duarte-Guevara, C., Swaminathan, V., Reddy Jr, B., Wen, C., Huang, Y., Huang, J., Liu, Y., Bashir, R. 2017. Characterization of a 1024 × 1024 DG-BioFET platform. Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical. 250:100-110.

Interpretive Summary: Biological field effect transistors (BioFETs) are becoming important and convenient biosensing platforms. BioFETs couple a transistor with a layer that is sensitive to the binding of specific biomolecules resulting in a detectable change in current. These transistors are simple, inexpensive, and very small. We previously developed a BioFET sensor capable of specifically detecting two important foodborne pathogenic bacteria, E. coli O157:H7 and Salmonella. In this paper, we present a massively multiplexed bioFET sensing platform with over one million sensor devices organized onto a small chip, only about a quarter inch square. These sensors are able to analyze a sample in ninety seconds. The large number of sensors and high rate of data acquisition improve the robustness and sensitivity of the detection.

Technical Abstract: The use of biological field effect transistors (BioFETs) for the detection of biochemical events will yield new sensing systems that are smaller, less expensive, faster, and capable of multiplexing. Here, we present a novel massively parallel dual-gated BioFET (DG-BioFET) platform with over a million transistors in a 7 × _7 mm2array that has all these benefits. Utilizing on-chip integrated circuits for row and column addressing and a PXI IC tester to measure signals, the drain current of each sensor in the 1024 × _1024array is serially acquired in just 90 s. In this paper, we demonstrate that sensors in our massively parallel platform have standard transfer characteristics, high pH-sensitivity, and robust performance. In addition, we use the dual-gate operation and fast acquisition, unique in our platform, to improve the sensing performance of the system. We show that tailored biasing of the two DG-BioFET gates results in signal amplification above the Nernst limit (to 84 mV/pH) and redundancy techniques facilitate differential referencing, improving the resulting signal-to-noise ratio. Our platform encompasses the advantages of semiconductor-based biosensors, and demonstrates the benefits of high parallelism and FET dual-gate amplification for electrical and miniaturized biological sensing.