Effect of platinum nanoparticle deposition parameters on hydrogen peroxide transduction for applications in wearable electrochemical glucose biosensors

Enhanced interest in wearable biosensor technology over the past decade is directly related to the increasing prevalence of diabetes and the associated requirement of daily blood glucose monitoring. In this work we investigate the platinum-carbon transduction element used in traditional first-generation glucose biosensors which rely on the concentration of hydrogen peroxide produced by the glucose-glucose oxidase binding scheme. We electrodeposit platinum nanoparticles on a commercially-available screen printed carbon electrode by stepping an applied current between 0 and 7.12 mA/cm(2) for a varying number of cycles. Next, we examine the trends in deposition and the effect that the number of deposition cycles has on the sensitivity of electrochemical glucose sensing. Results from this work indicate that applying platinum nanoparticles to screen printed carbon via electrodeposition from a metal salt solution improves overall biosensor sensitivity. This work also pinpoints the amount of platinum (i.e., number of deposition cycles) that maximizes biosensor sensitivity in an effort to minimize the use of the precious metals, viz., platinum, in electrode fabrication. In summary, this work quantifies the relationship between platinum electrodeposition and sensor performance, which is crucial in designing and producing cost-effective sensors.