Simple and Fast Fabrication Methodology for Platinum and Carbon Ultramicroelectrodes (UME) in Scanning Electrochemical Microscopy (SECM)

Scanning electrochemical microscopy (SECM) is a highly versatile method for measuring and imaging a wide range of systems. When paired with an intricately made ultramicroelectrode (UME) probe, SECM becomes an even more powerful tool for imaging microscale features in a system. However, purchasing these UME’s comes at a high cost with less ability for modification. Having high quality UME’s expands the ability of SECM and enables precise measuring and imaging in a wide range of applications such as solar cells in Dr. Ding’s lab, and corroding metals in Dr. Gateman’s lab. To combat this issue of high cost and set specifications, a simple and fast methodology for preparing UME’s was developed

Contact Angle & Electrochemical Measurements of Metallic Atmospheric Corrosion on Copper and Carbon Steel

Understanding atmospheric corrosion has been incredibly challenging due to the complex interplay between surface microstructures, environmental variables, and electrochemical processes. The methodology presented is being developed to apply to atmospheric corrosion models of metals and other advanced materials by observing the change in contact angle in situ as a function of corrosion parameters. Performed contact angle measurements on two industrially relevant metals (copper and carbon steel) over a 1 min to 30-day time span to track the change in wettability due to the formation of an air-formed oxide layer (aged) as a function of surface roughness

Enhancement of the Enzymatic Biosensor Response through Targeted Electrode Surface Roughness

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Enhancement of the enzymatic biosensor response through targeted electrode surface roughness

The field of enzymatic biosensors applied to brain electrochemistry has rapidly expanded over the last few years, thanks in part to their excellent selectivity to specific target species. Much current research is therefore focused on enhancing the electrochemical signal, which often involves the detection of stoichiometric amounts of H2O2 formed as part of the enzyme mechanism. This opens the possibility of enhancing a biosensor's performance by facilitating the H2O2 oxidation signal through surface modification. Here, we investigate the impact of the roughness of the platinum surface on the biosensor response, where rougher platinum surfaces show greater activity for H2O2 oxidation, and therefore enhanced biosensor sensitivity. Through careful manipulation of the electrode surface roughness, we are able to show a significant improvement to the LOD when using a rougher electrode surface. Additionally, we have shown that this enhanced surface roughness has no detrimental effects toward the electrode response time. This suggests that surface roughness could be a simple and easy to implement means of enhancing the sensitivity of electrode-based enzymatic biosensors, and is an important factor to consider when studying other aspects of biosensor fabrication