QCR - response to liposomes - an analysis

The Acoustic Load Concept (ALC) is a powerful tool to describe the transduction mechanism of Quartz Crystal Microbalance sensors. It especially draws a more complete picture than the well known equations derived by Sauerbrey, Kanazawa and Martin. In the first part major conclusions of this concept are summarized, which are relevant especially for chemical sensor applications. For large biomolecules and molecule clusters like liposomes the validity of the model assumptions must be called into question. In the second part generalization of the ALC is used to study signatures of deviations from one-dimensional assumptions. Variations of interfacial properties at the interface between the quartz crystal and molecule clusters are discussed and compared with experimental results. This step gives access to a better insight of signal generation in biosystems.