U.S.-Germany Cooperative Research on the Use of Self- Assembled Monolayers to Tailor the Properties of Acoustic Plate Mode Biosensors

该奖项支持哈佛大学的乔治·怀特塞德斯教授的学生到德国海德堡进行研究访问，作为怀特塞德斯教授和海德堡大学物理化学系的迈克尔·格伦兹教授之间合作研究项目的一部分。 他们的研究目标是开发生物传感器和生物传感器阵列。Grunze小组已经开发了声板模式（APM）传感器作为测量固定化抗原的抗体识别的技术。 哈佛小组已经开发了几种涉及蛋白质吸附到自组装单分子膜（SAM）的有机薄膜模型系统。 SAM是定义良好的模型表面，并提供了前所未有的控制裁剪表面与各种微妙和复杂的功能。 这些系统将用于测试和优化APM传感器。 合作者还将探索制造包括APM设备的叉指电极阵列的新工艺。 在参与的美国和德国研究小组的互补专业知识的基础上，这项创新研究将导致新的生物传感器，这些传感器是强大的，有区别的，廉价的和快速的。 它们可以在医学诊断、微光刻和其他领域有各种实际应用。 在基础层面上，这一研究将有助于加深我们对分子有序性与有机单分子膜粘弹性之间关系的理解。

This award supports research visits by students of Professor George Whitesides of Harvard University to Heidelberg, Germany, as part of a collaborative research project between Professor Whitesides and Professor Michael Grunze of the Department of Physical Chemistry of the University of Heidelberg. The objective of their research is to develop biosensors and biosensor arrays. The Grunze group has developed an acoustic plate mode (APM) sensor as a technique to measure antibody recognition of immobilized antigen. The Harvard group has developed several model systems of thin organic films involving adsorption of protein to self-assembled monolayers (SAM's) . SAM's are well defined model surfaces and offer unprecedented control for tailoring surfaces with a variety of delicate and complex functions. These systems will be used to test and optimize the APM sensor. The collaborators will also explore novel processes for fabricating the interdigitated electrode arrays that comprise the APM device. Building on the complementary expertise of the participating US and German research groups, this innovative research will lead to new biosensors that are robust, discriminating, inexpensive and fast. They could have a variety of practical applications in medical diagnostics, microlithography and other fields. On the fundamental level, the research should improve our understanding of the relation between molecular order and viscoelastic properties of organic monolayers.