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Project

Self-healing flexible biosensors for microwave dielectric spectroscopy

Microwave microfluidic sensors are emerging as an inexpensive and portable diagnosis tool compared to the conventional and bulky optical techniques. The feasibility of microwave dielectric spectroscopy has been shown already but the reported biosensors were implemented on rigid microwave substrates, limiting the types of samples that can be measured. To enhance characterizations in bio-incubators and/or well plates, it is essential to investigate additive manufacturing techniques to achieve flexible though robust biosensors. The approach envisioned is metal printing on a flexible material with very good microwave properties, such as PDMS. As micro-cracks may occur during bending, self-healing techniques using Galinstan will be investigated. The challenge is not only to design such a robust flexible microwave sensor, but also to ensure its inertness with respect to water based biological samples. To improve the diagnosis accuracy, also a temperature sensor is to be embedded in the biosensor. This PhD research builds on the complementary expertise on microwave biosensor design and dielectric spectroscopy at KU Leuven, and the knowledge on additive manufacturing techniques at the University of Melbourne.

Date:1 Mar 2022 →  Today
Keywords:liquid metal, biosensor, microwave, dielectric spectroscopy, self-healing
Disciplines:Microwave and millimetre wave technology
Project type:PhD project