A 3D-Printed Smartphone-Based Fluorescence Spectrometer: A Universal Design for Do-It-Yourself Experiments in Education

Abstract

Developing portable, cost-effective analytical tools is crucial to expose students to advanced spectrometric systems in the undergraduate curriculum. Numerous Do-It-Yourself (DIY) systems and smartphone-based fluorescence spectrometers have been developed over the last few decades. These systems can be specific to one particular cell phone or require unique configurations that are relatively difficult to implement in classroom or laboratory settings due to a diverse pool of students' owned cell phones. This work presents the design and validation of a cell-phone-based fluorescence spectrometer (FluoroBox). The system presented herein can be attached to any cell phone and adopted in classroom, online, hybrid, and laboratory settings, thus creating a versatile and universal system for adoption. The 3D-printed unit only requires a student's smartphone camera, a blue laser, a cuvette, a diffraction grating, and batteries. FloroBox's performance is validated through the qualitative analysis of edible oils. This study demonstrates the assembly, acquisition, and data processing compared with a conventional benchtop fluorescence spectrometer. By employing easily exchangeable units such as slits, excitation sources, and other elements, the device can detect fluorescence emissions from various fluorophores. This unit provides students with hands-on experience in fluorescence spectroscopy across multiple learning environments. The compact design, ease of use, and integration with mobile technology underline its potential for widespread adoption, particularly in resource-limited settings.