Fabrication of microsensors using unmodified office inkjet printers

In this paper, a simple microfabrication technique for delivering biological macromolecules and patterning microelectrode arrays using desktop inkjet printers is described. In particular, we have demonstrated that: (1) phospholipid films can be patterned into pre-designed features (dots, lines and grids) with a resolution down to 50 μm; (2) miniaturized electrode sets can be prepared via “printing” an alkanethiolate self-assembled monolayer on a gold CD-R and subsequent wet chemical etching; (3) multiplex chemical sensors (e.g., for iodine vapor) can be fabricated using a multi-step inkjet printing, selective etching and polymer deposition protocol. It is remarkable that the entire fabrication process has been carried out in a regular wet laboratory setting, for which no hardware or software modifications to the commercial printer are required and regular CD-Rs/glass slides are used as substrate materials. This technique outlines a generic, “amateur”-friendly approach for the rapid and economical construction of disposable multiplex microsensors and portable electroanalytical units.