The principle of operation of Bio-FET devices based on detecting changes in electrostatic potential due to binding of analyte. This the same mechanism of operation as glass electrode sensors which also detect changes in surface potential but were developed as early as the 1920s. Due to the small magnitude of the changes in surface potential upon binding of biomolecules or changing pH, glass electrodes require a high impedance amplifier which increases the size and cost of the device. In contrast, the advantage of Bio-FET devices is that they operate as an intrinsic amplifier, converting small changes in surface potential to large changes in current (through the transistor component) without the need for additional circuitry. This means BioFETs have the capability to be much smaller and more affordable than glass electrode-based biosensors. If the transistor is operated in the subthreshold region, then an exponential increase in current is expected for a unit change in surface potential.
The choice of reference electrode (liquid gate) or back-gate voltage determines the carrier concentration within the field effect transistor, and therefore its region of operation, therefore the response of the device can be optimised by tuning the gate voltage. If the transistor is operated in the subthreshold region then an exponential increase in current is expected for a unit change in surface potential. The response is often reported as the change in current on analyte binding divided by the initial current (
Δ
I
/
I
0
{\displaystyle \Delta I/I_{0}}
), and this value is always maximal in the subthreshold region of operation due to this exponential amplification. For most devices, optimum signal-to-noise, defined as change in current divided by the baseline noise, (
Δ
I
/
δ
i
noise
{\displaystyle \Delta I/\delta i_{\text{noise}}}
) is also obtained when operating in the subthreshold region, however as the noise sources vary between devices, this is device dependent.
One optimization of Bio-FET may be to put a hydrophobic passivation surface on the source and the drain to reduce non-specific biomolecular binding to regions which are not the sensing-surface. Many other optimisation strategies have been reviewed in the literature.
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