Integration of Organic Light Emitting Diodes and Organic Photodetectors for Lab-on-a-Chip Bio-Detection Systems

Abstract

The rapid development of microfluidics and lab-on-a-chip (LoC) technologies have allowed for the efficient separation and manipulation of various biomaterials, including many diagnostically relevant species. Organic electronics have similarly enjoyed a great deal of research, resulting in tiny, highly efficient, wavelength-selective organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) and organic photodetectors (OPDs). We consider the blend of these technologies for rapid detection and diagnosis of biological species. In the ideal system, optically active or fluorescently labelled biological species can be probed via light emission from OLEDs, and their subsequent light emission can be detected with OPDs. The relatively low cost and simple fabrication of the organic electronic devices suggests the possibility of disposable test arrays. Further, with full integration, the finalized system can be miniaturized and made simple to use. In this review, we consider the design constraints of OLEDs and OPDs required to achieve fully organic electronic optical bio-detection systems. Current approaches to integrated LoC optical sensing are first discussed. Fully realized OLED-and OPD-specific photoluminescence detection systems from literature are then examined, with a specific focus on their ultimate limits of detection. The review highlights the enormous potential in OLEDs and OPDs for integrated optical sensing, and notes the key avenues of research for cheap and powerful LoC bio-detection systems.

Organic Photodetectors in Analytical Applications

“…OPDs can be employed in optical sensing in several ways, with the majority of the sensors utilizing two different luminescent processes, bio/chemiluminescence (CL) and/or photoluminescence (PL) [2][3][4]. In this review we highlight examples of OPDs' use in CL/PL sensors as well as in absorption measurements.…”

“…Organic electronics plays an important role in analytical and bioelectronics applications. As an example, OLED-based luminescent sensors are sensitive with the ability to be integrated with sensing films, thin film PDs, and microfluidic structures [2][3][4]. Indeed, OLEDs have been extensively researched as excitation sources for photoluminescence (PL)-based integrated oxygen and pH sensors, integrated oxygen and humidity sensors, glucose and other bioanalyte sensors, various immunoassays, and for on-chip spectrometers [5,6].…”

“…The LoC technology attempts to create small scale analytical devices, which can be achieved via component integration. In optical sensors this entails integration of the excitation source, the sensing element, and the PD on a single, including microfluidic, chip [4]. The rapid growth of LoC usage in laboratory environment requires smaller PDs instead of a PMT to enable on-chip integration.…”

Automated, Miniaturized, and Integrated Quality Control-on-Chip (QC-on-a-Chip) for Cell-Based Cancer Therapy Applications

“…Although a variety of excitation sources are available for fluorescent detection laser-induced fluorescence (LIF) is most easily adapted to the dimensions of microchips Gao et al, 2004;Lee and Wen, 2005). Since laser systems are often expensive and wavelength specific (exhibiting very narrow bandwidth), a range of alternative light sources, including organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) have been successfully integrated into microfluidic devices (Choudhury et al, 2004;Cai et al, 2008Cai et al, , 2010Shinar and Shinar, 2008;Liu et al, 2011;Sagmeister et al, 2013;Williams et al, 2014). Additionally, organic field-effect transistors (OFETs) ( Figure 3C) as read-out devices for various physical (Sekitani et al, 2009), chemical, and biological (Lin and Yan, 2012) sensing applications can be used in the non-invasive, label free analysis system (Someya et al, 2010;Yun et al, 2014).…”

Luminescent Properties of Oxazine 170 Perchlorate Doped PMMA Fiber

“…The organic electronics became an alternative for inorganic based light generation technology since the reliability of organic based devices has been significantly improved [1]. The main issue of the organic light emitting devices is instability of their properties in terms of environmental factors [2].…”