7 research outputs found
Disposable sensors in diagnostics, food and environmental monitoring
Disposable sensors are lowâcost and easyâtoâuse sensing devices intended for shortâterm or rapid singleâpoint measurements. The growing demand for fast, accessible, and reliable information in a vastly connected world makes disposable sensors increasingly important. The areas of application for such devices are numerous, ranging from pharmaceutical, agricultural, environmental, forensic, and food sciences to wearables and clinical diagnostics, especially in resourceâlimited settings. The capabilities of disposable sensors can extend beyond measuring traditional physical quantities (for example, temperature or pressure); they can provide critical chemical and biological information (chemoâ and biosensors) that can be digitized and made available to users and centralized/decentralized facilities for data storage, remotely. These features could pave the way for new classes of lowâcost systems for health, food, and environmental monitoring that can democratize sensing across the globe. Here, a brief insight into the materials and basics of sensors (methods of transduction, molecular recognition, and amplification) is provided followed by a comprehensive and critical overview of the disposable sensors currently used for medical diagnostics, food, and environmental analysis. Finally, views on how the field of disposable sensing devices will continue its evolution are discussed, including the future trends, challenges, and opportunities
Wireless Machine to Machine Based Mobile Substation Monitoring for District Heating System
Monolithic integration of Giant Magnetoresistance (GMR) devices onto standard processed CMOS dies
Giant Magnetoresistance (GMR) based technology is nowadays the preferred option for low magnetic fields sensing in disciplines such as biotechnology or microelectronics. Their compatibility with standard CMOS processes is currently investigated as a key point for the development of novel applications, requiring compact electronic readout. In this paper, such compatibility has been experimentally studied with two particular non-dedicated CMOS standards: 0.35 ÎŒm from AMS (Austria MicroSystems) and 2.5 ÎŒm from CNM (Centre Nacional de MicroelectrĂČnica, Barcelona) as representative examples. GMR test devices have been designed and fabricated onto processed chips from both technologies. In order to evaluate so obtained devices, an extended characterization has been carried out including DC magnetic measurements and noise analysis. Moreover, a 2D-FEM (Finite Element Method) model, including the dependence of the GMR device resistance with the magnetic field, has been also developed and simulated. Its potential use as electric current sensors at the integrated circuit level has also been demonstrated. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd.Peer Reviewe