Page 418 - Organic Electronics in Sensors and Biotechnology

CHAPTER 11

Electrochemical

Surface Switches and

Electronic Ion Pumps

Based on Conjugated

Polymers

Magnus Berggren* and Agneta Richter-Dahlfors †
OBOE––Strategic Center for Organic Bioelectronics

11.1 Electronic Control of Surface Properties
In a vast number of biotechnological applications, the interface between
an aqueous fluid and a solid surface is of great importance. This inter-
face may serve as the anchoring site for biomolecules in biosensor sys-
tems, act as a catalyst for chemical reactions, etc. In the technology area
of microfluidics, major efforts have been devoted to design and engi-
neer the chemistry and topography of solid surfaces in order to control
the flow of liquids in dispensing and analysis systems of various com-
plexity. In the cell biology field, surfaces have been shown to act as
promoters for specific protein adsorption, and this effect has been uti-
lized to dictate the specific proliferation and differentiation scheme of
cultivated cells. Numerous recent breakthroughs in material and sur-
1
face science have provided a toolbox of technologies that today can be
used to tailor-make the fluid-solid interface in order to express desired

*Organic Electronics, ITN, Linköpings Universitet, Norrköping, Sweden.
† Department of Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
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