Integrated Thin-Film Fluorescence Sensor

An integrated thin-film device has been designed to constitute the sensory element of a miniature instrument for measuring the concentration of an atomic or molecular species that exhibits fluorescence at specified excitation and emission wavelengths. The device combines a fluorescence-emission method with a detection method to detect fluorescence emitted by those atoms or molecules of interest that are situated within a short distance of one surface of the device. Applications could be as diverse as medical and biological immunoassay and monitoring pollutant gases in engine exhausts.