Imec, a nanotechnology solutions provider in collaboration with Genalyte, has revealed disposable silicon photonics biosensor chips for use in Genalyte’s molecular detection and diagnostics equipment to enable superior multiplexed biosensing.
The advanced Si photonics-integrated chips combine silicon photonic waveguide devices developed by Imec with bio-compatible modifications, which were developed as a joint effort by Genalyte and Imec.
The chips combine Imec’s standard silicon photonic waveguide devices with bio-compatible modifications jointly developed by Imec and Genalyte. These chips allow for high levels of multiplexed biosensing due to the high integration level of Si photonics. An Imec CMORE initiative, the new biosensor chips containing 128 ring resonator sensors are capable of sensitive molecular detection in real-time. A bio-compatible passivation technology was developed and implemented in Imec’s 200mm cleanroom. Tests were conducted in the field to ensure that the chips met the functional requirements of Genalyte.
The silicon photonics platform at Imec allows for the miniaturization of advanced photonic functions on to a single chip, followed by the integration of electronics and photonics. Silicon photonics is preferred market-wide as it allows for use of typical microelectronic CMOS manufacturing processes and facilities to realize advanced optical functions with higher production volume and reduced manufacturing costs. The guiding principle behind high yield is the high reproducibility and quality of the phonic waveguides with accuracy of 100-500 nm.
Headquartered in Leuven, Belgium, Imec provides fabrication and prototyping services required by companies through the CMORE initiative. The services offered by Imec range include low-volume manufacturing, design and technology development.
Source: https://www.imec-int.com/en