Attomolar analyte sensing techniques (AttoSens): a review on a decade of progress on chemical and biosensing nanoplatforms

Detecting the ultra-low abundance of analytes in real-life samples, such as biological fluids, water, soil, and food, requires the design and development of high-performance biosensing modalities. The breakthrough efforts from the scientific community have led to the realization of sensing technologies that measure the analyte's ultra-trace level, with relevant sensitivity, selectivity, response time, and sampling efficiency, referred to as Attomolar Analyte Sensing Techniques (AttoSens) in this review. In an AttoSens platform, 1 aM detection corresponds to the quantification of 60 target analyte molecules in 100 mu L of sample volume. Herein, we review the approaches listed for various sensor probe design, and their sensing strategies that paved the way for the detection of attomolar (aM: 10(-18) M) concentration of analytes. A summary of the technological advances made by the diverse AttoSens trends from the past decade is presented.