Emerging Electronic Sensing Platform for life Science Applications

Field Effect Transistors (FETs) have recently attracted significant attention in the field of life sciences due to their potential for various applications, including infectious disease detection, chemical and biological lab instruments, and environmental monitoring. FET devices can be implemented using nanomaterials such as pdot-pss or silicon, which are widely used in standard technologies like Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor (CMOS) or Open-Gate Junction FET (OG-JFET), facilitated by the Canadian Microelectronics Corporation (CMC).

The fabrication process of OG-JFETs, in particular, has opened new avenues for innovating emerging sensing devices by taking advantage of the backgate and open top that are suitable for exposing to biomaterials. In an upcoming talk, Professor Ebrahim Ghafar-Zadeh will share with the audience the recent progress of his team in developing novel OG-JFET devices for chemical and biological applications, such as DNA mass quantification and oral cell monitoring. The outcomes of their research have resulted in several highly prestigious papers and a patent, showcasing the potential of OG-JFETs in life science applications.

One of the key challenges in utilizing OG-JFETs for sensing applications is the characterization of these devices. In his talk, Professor Ghafar-Zadeh will introduce his laboratory’s novel, low-cost, easy-to-use, and accurate multi-channel testing instrument, which has been developed to address this challenge. This testing instrument promises to provide valuable insights into the performance and behavior of OG-JFET devices, facilitating their optimization for sensing applications.

CMC Microsystems and 3IT.Nano at Université de Sherbrooke have developed an Electronic Sensor Platform (ESP) that enables on-chip integration of functional soft materials with microelectronics. The platform’s compact form factor is amenable to laboratory testing and integration with other sub-systems (hardware as well as embedded software).

Webinar participants will learn;

• How to become a designer in the next fabrication run 
• About the PDK based on Tanner L-Edit 
• The fabrication process and enhancements to technology
• Get an introduction to a portable low cost and easy-to-use characterization and readout system

Register

Biography of speakers: Ebrahim Ghafar-Zadeh received his B.Sc., M.Sc. and PhD degrees all in electrical engineering from KNT University of Technology, University of Tehran, and Polytechnique of Montreal (Montreal, Canada) respectively. Then he continued his research postdoc fellow in the departments of electrical engineering, McGill University, and bioengineering, University of California at Berkeley. In 2013, he joined as an Assistant Professor with the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS), Lassonde School of Engineering, York University, where he is currently an Associate Professor, a member of Graduate Programs of Departments of EECS and Biology, and the Director of the Biologically Inspired Sensors and Actuators (BioSA) Research Laboratory. His research is aimed at exploring novel integrated sensors and actuators for life science applications. Since 2013, the research of Prof. Ghafar-Zadeh has been supported by various funding agencies including NSERC, CIHR, SSHRC and he has published more than 1500 journals and conference papers and trained more than 40 highly qualified personnel (HQP) in the fields of electrical engineering and biology. He is a Licensed Professional Engineer in Ontario and senior Member of IEEE.