A new European consortium, Photosens, is developing a polymer-based nanophotonic sensor chip to screen air quality, to aid pharmaceutical process cleanliness and for food-safety applications.
The three-year Photosens project aims for a disposable, mass-producible sensor chip for generic multi-parameter sensing applications.
A key requirement is to perform screening tests without specialised infrastructure.
By combining nanophotonics, tailored polymer materials and mass-manufacturability, the project is challenging conventional analytical techniques that usually require expensive equipment and personnel.
VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland leads the programme, with the core nanophotonic technology provided by the University of Southampton (UK), novel silicone-based materials by Momentive, chemical functionalisation by TNO and the University of Vienna, and roll-to-roll mass-manufacturing technology provided by Nanocomp and 3D AG.
Philips and Renishaw Diagnostics provide the application knowledge and demonstration environment.
VTT's contribution is in transferring nanophotonic structures into polymer structures by the use of UV nanoimprinting, as well as integration of the multi-parameter sensor.
