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Biomedical subjects

Kannan Balasubramanian

Publications and source records attributed to Kannan Balasubramanian.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

Biosensors based on carbon nanotubes.

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) exhibit a unique combination of excellent mechanical, electrical and electrochemical properties, which has stimulated increasing interest in the application of CNTs as components in (bio)sensors. This review highlights various design methodologies for CNT-based biosensors and their employment for the detection of a number of biomolecules. In addition, recent developments in the fields of CNT-based chemiresistors and chemically sensitive field-effect transistors are presented. After a critical discussion of the factors that currently limit the practical use of CNT-based biosensors, the review concludes with an outline of potential future applications for CNTs in biology and medicine.

Biosensing Techniques↗

Chemically functionalized carbon nanotubes.

Since their discovery, carbon nanotubes have attracted the attention of many a scientist around the world. This extraordinary interest stems from their outstanding structural, mechanical, and electronic properties. In fact, apart from being the best and most easily available one-dimensional (1D) model system, carbon nanotubes show strong application potential in electronics, scanning probe microscopy, chemical and biological sensing, reinforced composite materials, and in many more areas. While some of the proposed applications remain still a far-off dream, others are close to technical realization. Recent advances in the development of reliable methods for the chemical functionalization of the nanotubes provide an additional impetus towards extending the scope of their application spectrum. In particular, covalent modification schemes allow persistent alteration of the electronic properties of the tubes, as well as to chemically tailor their surface properties, whereby new functions can be implemented that cannot otherwise be acquired by pristine nanotubes.

Carbon↗

Photocurrent imaging of charge transport barriers in carbon nanotube devices.

The realization of high-performance electrical devices incorporating single-wall carbon nanotubes critically depends on the minimization of charge transport barriers in the tubes and at the contacts. Herein we demonstrate photocurrent imaging as a fast and effective tool to locate such barriers within individual metallic nanotubes contacted by metal electrodes. The locally induced photocurrents directly reflect the existence of built-in electric fields associated with the presence of depletion layers at the contacts or structural defects along the tubes.

Electric Impedance↗