The life marker chip for the Exomars mission

Novel developments in antibody micro-array technology allow the development of a very sensitive instrument that is capable of detecting a wide variety of different biomarkers from a sample liquid. An international consortium led by the UK is currently developing the Life Marker Chip as an analytical instrument for the ExoMars mission in 2018 based on the use of immunoassay technique. In this paper it will be discussed how micro/nano system hardware has been designed and the connected fabrication technology has been developed, compatible with the requirements of a Mars mission instrument and allowing a seamless integration in the instrument.