Integrated active mixing and biosensing using surface acoustic waves (SAW) and surface plasmon resonance (SPR) on a common substrate.

This article presents a device incorporating surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensing and surface acoustic wave (SAW) actuation integrated onto a common LiNbO(3) piezoelectric substrate. The device uses Rayleigh-type SAW to provide active microfluidic mixing in the fluid above the SPR sensor. Validation experiments show that SAW-induced microfluidic mixing results in accelerated binding kinetics of an avidin-biotin assay. Results also show that, though SAW action causes a parasitic SPR response due to heat injection into the fluid, a relatively brief relaxation time following the SAW pulses allows the effect to dissipate, without affecting the overall assay response. Since both SPR sensors and SAW transducers can be fabricated simultaneously using low-cost microfabrication methods on a single substrate, the proposed design is well-suited to lab-on-chip applications.