Spectral characterization of yeast cells with an epitaxy-based UV-Vis optical sensor

The optical spectra of yeast cells in phosphate buffer saline (PBS) were analyzed with an optical UV-vis sensor based on a shallow p+n junction realized in a low doped n-type epitaxial silicon layer grown on a strongly doped n+ substrate. The presence of the n/n+ interface allows a significantly enhanced sensitivity, due to an increased collection of carriers photogenerated both by short and large wavelengths in the range 250...800 nm. In our experiments the optical absorption of yeast cells was investigated in the wavelength range 250...500 nm as a function of the cells concentration in PBS in the range of 6 × 106–2 × 108 cells/ml. The main absorption peaks were found at 310, 350, 400 and 427 nm, respectively. A significant red shift of the wide absorption band at 427 nm has been observed when increasing cell concentration. This red shift behaviour was nonlinear, with saturation observed for yeast concentrations larger than 5 × 107 cells/ml. The half-peak bandwidth of this peak also showed a most significant nonlinear variation. These findings suggest that monitoring the parameters of the absorption band at 427 nm versus cells concentration could be used, e.g. using a dedicated integrated spectrometric microsystem, for fast quantitative measurements of yeast cell concentrations in various bio-samples, with possible applications in the food industry.