Michel M. Maharbiz (Advisor)

Though the chemotaxis sensing system of emph{Escherichia coli} is known to approach fundamental physical limits for biosensing, few attempts have been made to co-opt the system as the front end for a biohybrid sensor. We propose a biohybrid sensor that monitors chemotactic bacterial flagellar motor (BFM) rotation speed and direction to infer analyte concentration for a low-power, fast, and sensitive response. We present the design and fabrication of a four point impedimetric array that uses current injection electrodes to circumvent electrode polarization screening, enabling solution...

A major hurdle in brain-machine interfaces (BMI) is the lack of an implantable neural interface system that remains viable for a substantial fraction of a primate lifetime. Recently, sub-mm implantable, wireless electromagnetic (EM) neural interfaces have been demonstrated in an effort to extend system longevity. However, EM systems do not scale down in size well due to the severe inefficiency of coupling radio waves at mm and sub-mm scales. We propose an alternative wireless power...

Sensors are becoming ubiquitous and increasingly integrated with and on the human body. As these devices grow in number and decrease in size, there grows a critical need to find sustainable and convenient power sources. We demonstrate a touch interrogation powered energy harvesting system which transforms the kinetic energy of a human finger to electric energy. As is well known for touch display devices, the proximity of a finger can alter the effective value of small capacitances, and these capacitance changes can drive a current which is rectified to charge an energy storage...

The micro total analysis system (μTAS) has seen great interest and advances since its definition over two decades ago. By harnessing the fabrication tools of the semiconductor industry and exploiting the unique physical phenomena that dominate at the micro- to nano-scale,these devices aim to address applications ranging from point-of-care diagnostics to pharmaceutical development. A truly versatile μTAS technology platform will enable reconfigurable, parallel, and high...