The effect of a SiO2 layer on the performance of a ZnO-based SAW device for high sensitivity biosensor applications

The properties of ZnO/SiO2/Si surface acoustic wave (SAW) love mode biosensors are studied in this paper. This specific structure is very suitable for biosensors since the reactive ZnO surface offers the opportunity for effective bio-ZnO interfaces, and the development of sensors directly on Si substrates provides the chance for full integration with read-out and signal processing circuitry in the mature Si technology. However, investigations of the dependence of buffer layer SiO2 on the performance of biosensors are very few. Therefore, the main interest of this paper is to find the relation between the properties of biosensors and the SiO2 layer. Some important results are obtained by solving the coupled electromechanical field equations. It is found that the mass loading sensitivity can be further improved by adding the SiO2 layer; furthermore, the maximal sensitivity of the biosensors can be obtained by adjusting the thicknesses of the two layers. Accordingly, consideration of the buffer layer is very important in the optimization of devices. On the other hand, it is found that the thickness of the piezoelectric guiding layer has an evident effect on the electromechanical coupling coefficient, while that of the SiO2 layer has a tiny effect on it. Moreover, we find that the effect of initial stresses on the properties of biosensors depends on the distribution of acoustic flow power in the two layers. This analysis is meaningful for the manufacture and applications of the ZnO/SiO2/Si structure love wave biosensor.