Electrostatic switching biosensor - a novel label-free DNA detection using an electrode charging technique

This paper reports a novel electrical detection of label-free DNA by use of a MEMS electrostatic micro-switch. The electrostatic micro-switch detects the immobilization of probe oligonucleotides and their hybridization with target oligonucleotides using pull-in voltage shift in the micro-switch originated from negative charges of the oligonucleotides. A numerical simulation is analyzed to support this concept. The proposed biomolecule detection method using an electrostatic micro-switch represents a protocol for a new candidate of microactuator-type sensor.