Waveguide-capillary tube integration schemes for the characterization of nano-liter liquids at millimeter wave frequencies with record sensitivities

Progress in pharmaceutical and biotechnological research relies on the availability of a variety of analytical measurement tools. In this paper we discuss the progress on our research in the field of a novel real-time label-free, and immobilization-free integrated sensor in silicon for monitoring biological substances in nano-liter liquids flowing through a capillary tube. The performance of various sensor generations is benchmarked with water-alcohol mixtures: we demonstrate an dynamic range increase from 15 to 60 dB. A selection of measurements on biological species dissolved in liquids is presented.