Progress in biosensor and bioelectronics simulations: New applications for TCAD

Scaling of devices in the semiconductor industry has reached an extremely impressive level; electronic device dimensions are approaching atomic scales and can also have dimensions comparable to many biological microstructures. In this paper, we present an overview of the new challenges in modeling electronics that interface with and bridge into the domains of biotechnology. In particular, we will discuss the applications of conventional integrated circuits technology computer-aided design (TCAD) in these new and emerging areas. Furthermore, we will examine the unique modeling requirements of biosensors in molecular identification and quantification applications. As we will discuss in this paper, there are exciting research challenges for the electronics community - new opportunities to leverage lessons learned from scaling.