Paper-based microfluidic devices intergrating inGaN/GaN semiconductor microtubes for ultrasensitive detection of disease markers

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Portable, ultrasensitive biosensors capable of rapidly detecting disease-relevant markers at the point of care will have an enormous impact on health care by enabling early-stage disease diagnosis and timely treatment. This project aims at developing a novel paper-based microfluidic platform technology that is generic for creating ultrasensitive paper-based semiconductor biosensors for various affinity-based analytical tests. We will explore a new strategy of integrating specifically designed InGaN/GaN microtubes onto paper-based microfluidic devices in a well-controlled fashion. Compared to other semiconductor materials (e.g., Si and carbon nanotube), InGaN/GaN are more sensitive to surface binding of biomolecules due to its higher electron mobility and surface-accumulated charge carriers, and can directly convert a biochemical reaction into an electrical signal with ultrahigh sensitivity and fast response. A unique technological innovation to be made in this project is the combination of two enabling functional materials, cellulose paper and group-III nitrides (e.g., InGaN/GaN), to create an excellent type of biosensors that inherit the advantages of both paper-based microfluidics and group-III nitride based biosensing. For proof-of-concept demonstration, we will use the proposed paper-based devices for detection of low-concentration HIV p24 antigen in blood samples. The proposed platform technology will lead to a high-performance solution to early-stage disease diagnosis, and will also enable the development of other types of paper-based electronic sensors for non-diagnostic applications such as environmental monitoring, food safety inspection, and consumer electronics.