KR102024916B1 - Sensor and manufacturing method for sensor thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a sensor and a method of manufacturing the same, and more particularly, to (a) forming a pair of electrode-like polymer structures spaced apart from each other on the upper surface of the substrate, and (b) in the step (a) Thermally decomposing the electrode formed on the upper surface of the substrate to convert the electrode into a carbon electrode, and (c) stacking an insulating cover layer on the upper side of the carbon electrode converted by the step (b) to form the carbon spaced apart from each other. Forming a microchannel between the electrodes is included, improving the structure of the sensor to reduce the size, at the same time to improve the sensing sensitivity of the sensor, and to prevent the deviation of the factor to detect the sensing unit for sensing the factor to be detected In addition, by increasing the area of the oxidation / reduction reaction to provide a high-sensitivity sensor and its manufacturing method.

Description

Sensor and its manufacturing method {SENSOR AND MANUFACTURING METHOD FOR SENSOR THEREOF}

The present invention relates to a sensor and a method of manufacturing the same, and more particularly, to form a microchannel consisting of a sensing unit sensed by the oxidation / reduction reaction to prevent the departure of the factor to be detected, the reaction area is increased The present invention relates to a sensor having a high sensitivity and a method of manufacturing the same.

Recently, with increasing interest in environmental issues and the development of information and communication devices, sensors for various materials, especially biomaterials, are being developed, and thus, the manufacturing is simplified and the performance is improved by incorporating semiconductor technology. All sensors have the highest goal of improving sensitivity to improve performance, and efforts to achieve these goals are increasing.

Meanwhile, electrochemical sensors or optical sensors are mainly used for bio sensing.

The optical sensor has a disadvantage in that the reaction speed is faster than other sensors, and the detection degree is high but the size is large, resulting in poor space utilization and inconvenience in use.

Disadvantages of the optical sensor can be overcome by using an electrochemical sensor, which measures the current flowing to an external circuit by electrochemically oxidizing or reducing a target material, or a gas dissolved or ionized in an electrolyte solution or a solid. It uses the electromotive force generated by the ions of the phase acting on the ion electrode, which is small in size, but has a very slow reaction speed and low sensitivity.

That is, according to Korean Patent No. 0741187, an electrochemical sensor for measuring the concentration of an analyte is placed in a reaction zone in an electrochemical cell including two electrodes having an impedance for proper current measurement. Measure the concentration of the component to be analyzed. The component to be analyzed reacts directly or indirectly with the redox agent to form an oxidizable or reducible substance in an amount corresponding to the concentration of the component to be analyzed. The amount of oxidizable or reducible material present is then measured electrochemically. In general, the method requires sufficient isolation between the electrodes so that the electrolysis product does not touch other electrodes and does not interfere with the reaction at the next electrode while it is measurable, and the manufacturing cost is expensive and the manufacturing process is complicated.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a sensor and a method of manufacturing the same, which improve the sensing sensitivity of the sensor while reducing its size by improving the structure of the sensor.

In addition, an object of the present invention is to provide a high-sensitivity sensor and a method of manufacturing the same by preventing separation of a factor to be detected by a sensing unit sensing a factor to be detected and increasing an area of an oxidation / reduction reaction.

In addition, the present invention can freely control the thickness, position, structure, etc. of the carbon electrode and the microchannel, the sensor manufacturing method that can be mass-produced by dramatically increasing the productivity of the sensor based on the carbon electrode and the microchannel and The purpose is to provide a sensor used.

The sensor manufacturing method according to the present invention is (a) forming a pair of electrode-like polymer structure spaced apart from each other on the upper surface of the substrate, and (b) the formed on the upper surface of the substrate by the step (a) Thermally decomposing an electrode-shaped polymer structure into a carbon electrode, and (c) laminating an insulating cover layer on an upper side of the carbon electrode converted by the step (b), between the carbon electrodes formed to be spaced apart from each other. Forming a microchannel.

At this time, the step (a) according to the present invention, (a-1) forming an insulating layer on the upper surface of the substrate made of silicon wafer, and (a-2) the insulating layer formed by the step (a-1) Applying a photoresist onto the photoresist layer and (a-3) placing a photomask on which the electrode region is perforated on the insulating layer on which the photoresist is applied by the step (a-2) and then exposing with a UV light. And (a-4) developing and removing the photoresist of the remaining portions except for the portions exposed by the step (a-3), spaced apart from each other on the upper portion of the substrate, and forming a pair of electrode-like polymer structures. Forming may be included.

In the step (c) according to the present invention, PDMS (Polydimethylsiloxane) is preferably used as the insulating cover layer laminated on the carbon electrode. When the insulating cover layer is laminated, silicon oxide may be used as an adhesive medium.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the insulating cover layer is limited to PDMS, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and any one of an electrical insulating material, a photoresist, Teflon, and glass may be used.

In addition, the sensor according to the present invention is bonded to a pair of carbon electrodes formed spaced apart from each other on the upper side of the substrate including an insulating layer, and is bonded to the spaced above the pair of carbon electrodes, so as to form a microchannel between the carbon electrodes An insulation cover layer is included.

In addition, a plurality of protrusions may be alternately formed on the electrode surfaces facing each other of the carbon electrodes forming the inner wall surface of the microchannel according to the present invention, such that the microchannel may be bent.

At this time, the form of the microchannel according to the present invention may be formed in a zigzag, curved and spiral form.

The sensor and its manufacturing method according to the present invention has the following effects.

First, it is possible to produce a low cost batch process by exposing the carbon electrodes and removing the development and stacking the insulating cover layer.

Second, the oxidation and reduction reaction of the factor to be detected is repeated due to the microchannel formed by stacking the insulation cover layer to prevent the separation of the factor to be detected and to increase the area of the oxidation / reduction reaction. The efficiency of the reaction is increased to improve the sensitivity of the sensor.

Third, since the microchannel is formed due to the volume reduction through thermal decomposition of the micro-unit photoresist, it is possible to produce the nanostructure at low cost without expensive nanoprocessing equipment.

1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a sensor manufacturing method of the present invention.
Figure 2 is a block showing in more detail step (a) according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is an exemplary view briefly showing a process of a sensor manufacturing method according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 is a cross-sectional view of a sensor according to an embodiment of the present invention.
5 is an exemplary view showing another configuration of a sensor according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Prior to this, terms or words used in the present specification and claims should not be construed as being limited to the common or dictionary meanings, and the inventors should properly explain the concept of terms in order to best explain their own invention. Based on the principle that it can be defined, it should be interpreted as meaning and concept corresponding to the technical idea of the present invention.

Therefore, the embodiments described in the specification and the drawings shown in the drawings are only the most preferred embodiments of the present invention, and do not represent all of the technical idea of the present invention, these are equivalent to replaceable at the time of the present application It should be understood that there may be variations.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a sensor manufacturing method of the present invention, Figure 2 is a block showing in more detail step (a) according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 3 is a sensor according to an embodiment of the present invention Figure 4 is an exemplary view showing a brief process of the manufacturing method, Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view showing a cross section of the sensor according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 5 is an exemplary view showing another configuration of the sensor according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The present invention forms a sensing unit in which the elements to be detected are sensed by the oxidation / reduction reaction into microchannels partially closed by an insulating cover layer, thereby preventing the separation of the factors to be detected and increasing the area of the oxidation / reduction reaction. The present invention relates to a sensor having a high sensitivity and a method of manufacturing the same, with reference to FIGS. 1 and 3.

In step (a),

A pair of electrode-shaped polymer structures 20 are formed on the upper surface of the substrate 10 and spaced apart from each other.

An embodiment in which the step (a) of forming the pair of electrode-shaped polymer structures 20 formed on the upper surface of the substrate 10 is further described in detail with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3.

First, in step (a-1) (S110),

An insulating layer 11 is formed on the upper surface of the substrate 10 made of silicon wafer.

In this embodiment, although the insulating layer 11 is formed on the upper surface of the substrate 10, the step of forming the insulating layer 11 may be omitted, and the substrate 10 may be formed of an insulating material. .

And (a-2) to step S120,

The photoresist P is coated on the upper surface of the substrate 10 on which the insulating layer 11 is formed on the upper surface by step (a-1) (S110). In other words, the photoresist P is applied to the upper surface of the insulating layer 11 formed on the upper surface of the substrate 10.

 At this time, the photoresist (P) is preferably applied by spin coating for even application, and SU-8 is used as the photoresist (P).

And in step (a-3) (S130),

The photomask M having a corresponding electrode region perforated is positioned on the insulating layer 11 to which the photoresist P is applied in step (a-2) (S120), and then is exposed to ultraviolet light. .

In this case, the perforations of the photomask M are formed in pairs, and the exposed ultraviolet light energy should be irradiated with sufficient ultraviolet light so that the photoresist P can be cured from the top of the photoresist to just above the insulating layer 11. do.

When the primary exposure is completed, the photoresist P is cured in the shape of the corresponding electrode region by the perforation of the photomask M on the insulating layer 11.

And (a-4) step (S140),

The photoresist P of the remaining portions except for the portions exposed and cured by the step (a-3) (S130) is developed and removed to be spaced apart from each other on the upper portion of the substrate 10 to form a pair of electrode polymers. Form the structure 20.

The photoresist (P) development process described above is omitted because it uses a commonly used method for removing the photoresist (P).

In the embodiment of the present invention, the photoresist P is limited to SU-8. However, the photoresist P is not limited thereto, and any one of a negative photoresist may be used.

It is also possible to use a positive photoresist instead of a negative photoresist. However, in the case of using a positive photoresist, the shape of the photomask used in step (a-3) (S130) becomes the inverse of the shape of the photomask for negative photoresist. In operation S140, the photoresist region exposed is removed.

When a pair of electrodes 20 spaced apart from each other is formed on the upper surface of the substrate 10 by the step (a) (S100), step (b) (S200) is the next step,

In step (a) (S100), the electrodes 20 formed on the upper surface of the substrate 10 are thermally decomposed to convert to the carbon electrodes 21.

In this case, the electrode 20 is not only carbonized through pyrolysis, but the carbonized carbon electrode 21 has a width of 100 nm to several cm, a height of 100 nm to several μm, and a length of several μm to several hundred cm. Can be.

In this case, the width of the channel composed of the carbon electrode 21 may be 1 to several hundred μm, and may be 100 nm to several μm in height.

The environmental conditions of the pyrolysis is preferably pyrolyzed at a high temperature of more than 800 ° C in a vacuum or inert gas environment, but if the temperature is controlled at a temperature of 300 ° C or more pyrolysis temperature, the conductivity, elastic modulus, shape, etc. of the final carbon electrode is controlled. The thermal decomposition temperature is not limited to 800 ° C. as such may be used.

When the pair of electrodes 20 formed by curing the photoresist P by the step (b) (S200) is converted to the carbon electrode 21 by thermal decomposition, the step (c) (S300) is performed as the next step. ,

The insulating cover layer 30 in the form of a layer is stacked on the upper side of the carbon electrode 21 converted by the step (b) (S200), and the microchannel C is disposed between the pair of carbon electrodes 21. To form.

Therefore, the carbon electrodes 21 spaced apart from each other by the above process have a structure in which they are connected to each other by the insulating cover layer 30, and form a microchannel C between the pair of carbon electrodes 21. do.

In the step (c) (S300), when the insulating cover layer 30 is laminated on the carbon electrode 21, the adhesive is adhered using an adhesive medium 40. In this case, silicon oxide is used as the adhesive medium 40. do. Preferably, the method of adhering the silicon oxide medium only to the upper layer of the carbon electrode 21 may use a continuous photolithography and sputtering process.

PDMS (Polydimethylsiloxane) is preferably used as the insulating cover layer laminated on the carbon electrode. When the insulating cover layer is laminated, silicon oxide may be used as an adhesive medium.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the insulating cover layer is limited to PDMS, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and any one of an electrical insulating material, a photoresist, Teflon, and glass may be used.

Looking at the sensor according to the embodiment described above with reference to the drawings.

Referring to FIG. 4, a pair of carbon electrodes 21 are spaced apart from each other on the substrate 10 including the insulating layer 11.

The insulating cover layer 30 is bonded to the pair of spaced upper carbon electrodes 21 to form a microchannel C between the pair of carbon electrodes 21.

In this case, as illustrated in FIG. 5, a plurality of protrusions C1 are alternately formed on the electrode surfaces of the carbon electrodes 21 that form the inner wall surface of the microchannel C so as to cross each other. ) Is formed in a bent form.

At this time, the shape of the microchannel (C) may be formed in a zigzag, curve and spiral.

Here, any one electrode 21 of the pair of carbon electrodes 21 may act as an oxidation electrode for oxidizing a factor to be detected, and the other electrode 21 may act as a reduction electrode for reducing the factor to be detected. have.

Alternatively, one electrode 21 of the pair of carbon electrodes 21 serves as a reduction electrode for reducing a factor to be detected, and the other electrode 21 is an oxide electrode for oxidizing the factor to be detected. It may work.

Carbon electrodes and microchannel-based sensors manufactured by the present method can be widely used for sensing of oxidizable and reducible materials.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings, this is merely exemplary, and it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications and equivalent other embodiments are possible. Therefore, the true technical protection scope of the present invention will be defined by the technical spirit of the appended claims.

C: microchannel C1: protrusion M: photomask
P: photoresist 10: substrate 20: polymer structure
21: carbon electrode 11: insulating layer
30: insulating cover layer 40: adhesive medium

Claims (8)

(a) forming a pair of electrode-shaped polymer structures spaced apart from each other on an upper surface of the substrate;
(b) thermally decomposing the electrode-like polymer structure formed on the upper surface of the substrate by the step (a) to convert it into a carbon electrode;
(c) laminating and bonding an insulating cover layer on the upper side of the carbon electrode converted by the step (b) to form a microchannel between the carbon electrodes formed spaced apart from each other.
The method according to claim 1,
Step (a) is
(a-1) forming an insulating layer on the upper surface of the substrate made of silicon wafer;
(a-2) applying a photoresist on the insulating layer formed by the step (a-1);
(a-3) exposing the photomask on which the electrode region is perforated on the insulating layer to which the photoresist is applied by the step (a-2) and exposing with ultraviolet light;
(a-4) developing and removing the photoresist of the remaining portions except for the portions exposed by the step (a-3) to form a pair of electrode-shaped polymer structures spaced apart from each other on the upper portion of the substrate; Sensor manufacturing method that includes.
The method according to claim 1,
In the step (c), the method for manufacturing a sensor using silicon oxide as an adhesive medium when the insulating cover layer is laminated on the carbon electrode.
A pair of carbon electrodes spaced apart from each other on an upper side of the substrate including the insulating layer;
And an insulating cover layer adhered to the spaced pair of carbon electrodes to form a microchannel between the carbon electrodes.
The method according to claim 4,
And a plurality of protrusions extending alternately on opposite electrode surfaces of the carbon electrodes constituting the inner wall surface of the microchannel such that the microchannels are bent.
The method according to claim 5,
The microchannel sensor is formed in a zigzag form.
The method according to claim 5,
The microchannel sensor is formed in a curved shape.
The method according to claim 5,
The microchannel sensor is formed in a spiral form.

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