Asymmetric split-ring resonator-based biosensor for detection of label-free stress biomarkers

In this paper, an asymmetric split-ring resonator, metamaterial element, is presented as a biosensing transducer for detection of highly sensitive and label-free stress biomarkers. In particular, the two biomarkers, cortisol and alpha-amylase, are used for evaluating the sensitivity of the proposed biosensor. In case of cortisol detection, the competitive reaction between cortisol-bovine serum albumin and free cortisol is employed, while alpha-amylase is directly detected by its antigen-antibody reaction. From the experimental results, we find that the limit of detection and sensitivity of the proposed sensing device are about 1 ng/ml and 1.155 MHz/ng ml(-1), respectively. (C) 2013 AIP Publishing LLC.