November / December, 2003

Graduate Research Interest – Stephen Radke

Title: The design and fabrication of a biosensor to
detect pathogenic bacteria in food and water

The biosensor integrates immunology with microfabrication in order to detect food borne pathogens. The sensor is fabricated using an IC patterning process employed in the semiconductor industry. The sensor surface is coated with bioreagents specific to the target pathogen (E.coli, Salmonella, etc.) Impedance Spectroscopy is used to measure the electrical changes occurring at the sensor surface. The small feature sizes (3 microns) of the sensor allow it to detect low numbers of bacteria in a few minutes. The biosensors area is being researched because current diagnostic tests for detecting food borne pathogens are outdated, expensive and slow. As food safety becomes more important, so will the need for rapid diagnostic devices that keep pace with the needs of researchers and inspectors.

Biosensors research is dynamic and exciting these days. For some types of sensors, research is hitting a critical mass and will be ready for commercialization. It is nice to be conducting research in an applied field like sensors development.

Steve Radke is a Biosystems Engineering student working towards his PhD. His major professor is Dr. Evangelyn Alocilja.

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November 24, 2003