Home > Press > New nanotech sensor developed with medical, chemistry applications
Abstract:
Researchers at Oregon State University and other institutions have developed a new "plasmonic nanorod metamaterial" using extraordinarily tiny rods of gold that will have important applications in medical, biological and chemical sensors.
New nanotech sensor developed with medical, chemistry applications
Corvallis, OR | Posted on October 13th, 2009The new device is at least 10 times more sensitive than existing technology, researchers say, can be tuned to sense different types of materials and is easy to make in differing sizes for individual needs. It's one of the first real applications of "metamaterials" - artificial materials that have unusual properties based on their structure, which are not readily available in nature.
The findings were announced today in Nature Materials, a professional journal. Collaborators on the project included OSU, the Universite de Mediterranee in France, Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal in Canada, and the Queen's University of Belfast in the United Kingdom. The research was supported by the National Science Foundation and other agencies.
"This is very exciting," said Viktor Podolskiy, an associate professor of physics at OSU. "It's an important new application of nanotechnology and the field of metamaterials, and should find some significant uses in medicine, chemistry and physics."
The new material is made primarily from gold, but given the minuscule size of the device, the high cost of gold is actually of little importance - and the use of gold aids its performance, because this rare metal is very inert and doesn't interact with biological or many other molecules. The device is a little like the bristles that stick up on a hairbrush, but in this case the bristles are only about 20 nanometers wide - it would take 5,000 such bristles to be the width of a human hair.
Using this device and various optical techniques, sensors can determine very precisely the identity and amount of various substances, including extremely small compounds such as drugs, vitamins or hormones. The concept should find near-term applications in medicine and other fields, scientists say.
####
For more information, please click here
Contacts:
Viktor Podolskiy
541-737-1702
Copyright © Oregon State University
If you have a comment, please Contact us.Issuers of news releases, not 7th Wave, Inc. or Nanotechnology Now, are solely responsible for the accuracy of the content.
Bookmark:
| Related News Press |
News and information
Sensors innovations for smart lithium-based batteries: advancements, opportunities, and potential challenges August 8th, 2025
Deciphering local microstrain-induced optimization of asymmetric Fe single atomic sites for efficient oxygen reduction August 8th, 2025
Lab to industry: InSe wafer-scale breakthrough for future electronics August 8th, 2025
Chemistry
Cambridge chemists discover simple way to build bigger molecules – one carbon at a time June 6th, 2025
Single-atom catalysts change spin state when boosted by a magnetic field June 4th, 2025
Quantum interference in molecule-surface collisions February 28th, 2025
Chainmail-like material could be the future of armor: First 2D mechanically interlocked polymer exhibits exceptional flexibility and strength January 17th, 2025
Nanomedicine
New molecular technology targets tumors and simultaneously silences two ‘undruggable’ cancer genes August 8th, 2025
New imaging approach transforms study of bacterial biofilms August 8th, 2025
Cambridge chemists discover simple way to build bigger molecules – one carbon at a time June 6th, 2025
Electrifying results shed light on graphene foam as a potential material for lab grown cartilage June 6th, 2025
Sensors
Sensors innovations for smart lithium-based batteries: advancements, opportunities, and potential challenges August 8th, 2025
Quantum engineers ‘squeeze’ laser frequency combs to make more sensitive gas sensors January 17th, 2025
Discoveries
Deciphering local microstrain-induced optimization of asymmetric Fe single atomic sites for efficient oxygen reduction August 8th, 2025
ICFO researchers overcome long-standing bottleneck in single photon detection with twisted 2D materials August 8th, 2025
New molecular technology targets tumors and simultaneously silences two ‘undruggable’ cancer genes August 8th, 2025
Simple algorithm paired with standard imaging tool could predict failure in lithium metal batteries August 8th, 2025
Announcements
Sensors innovations for smart lithium-based batteries: advancements, opportunities, and potential challenges August 8th, 2025
Deciphering local microstrain-induced optimization of asymmetric Fe single atomic sites for efficient oxygen reduction August 8th, 2025
Japan launches fully domestically produced quantum computer: Expo visitors to experience quantum computing firsthand August 8th, 2025
ICFO researchers overcome long-standing bottleneck in single photon detection with twisted 2D materials August 8th, 2025
 |
||
 |
||
| The latest news from around the world, FREE | ||
 |
||
|
|
||
| Premium Products | ||
 |
||
|
Only the news you want to read!
Learn More |
||
 |
||
|
Full-service, expert consulting
Learn More |
||
|
|
||