A real-time monitoring of the diffusion coefficient using a micro sensing device is valuable for analyzing the dynamic
change of protein-protein interactions and the protein conformation, such as the molecular size and the higher order
structure. In the present study, we have developed a novel micro-optical diffusion sensor (MODS) based on a laserinduced
dielectrophoresis (LIDEP) enabling small sample volume and high-speed measurement. This paper reports the
measurement principle, chip design, and the validity of the proposed method. MODS consists of a pair of transparent
electrodes and a photoconductive layer sealing the liquid sample. AC voltage is applied between transparent electrodes,
and two excitation lasers are intersected on the photoconductive layer. The electrical conductivity distribution of the a-
Si:H layer due to the photoconductive effect generates a non-uniform electric field followed by the dielectrophoresis
(DEP), and then the concentration distribution is induced by LIDEP force. After cutting the AC voltage, the mass
diffusion is occurred, and the diffusion coefficient can be obtained by observing the one dimensional diffusion process
along with the interference fringe pattern. In the preliminary measurement, the prototype of the DEP cell was fabricated
by the micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS) technique in order to verify the applicability of MODS, and we
confirmed the lattice-shaped concentration distribution of polystyrene beads in distilled water. The decay time of the
diffusion of the concentration distribution agreed well with the theoretical calculation. As a result, the applicability of
MODS as the diffusion coefficient measurement method was verified.
In recent years, viscosity has been one of the most important thermophysical properties, and its new sensing applications
in a noninvasive method with small sample volume are required in a broad field. For example, in the medical field, the viscosity of body fluid, such as blood, is an essential parameter for diagnosis. In the present study, we have developed a new miniaturized optical viscometer, namely MOVS (Micro Optical Viscosity Sensor), which is applicable to the noninvasive, high speed, small sample volume, in situ and in vivo measurement of a liquid sample in both medical and industrial fields based on laser-induced capillary wave (LiCW) technique. In our experimental setup, two excitation laser beams interfere on a liquid surface and generate the LiCW. By observing the behavior of the LiCW using a probing laser, which contains the surface information of the sample liquid, viscosity and surface tension can be obtained. In this paper, the fabrication of prototype MOVS chip using micro-electro mechanical systems (MEMS) technology for the first time and the discussion of the validity of the viscosity measurement are reported. Preliminary measurement using distilled water was demonstrated, and nanosecond order high speed damping oscillation was successfully observed.
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