Develop new sensors

The Sensors node enables the design, prototyping and validation of sensors to support innovative technologies used to detect pathogens, chemicals and elemental contamination in water.

McMaster University’s Micro and Nano System Laboratory (MNSL) includes equipment that augments the infrastructure already in place at McMaster for the development of environmental sensing technologies. An additional facility for development of elemental sensing technologies is located at the University of Waterloo.

• Fabrication of sensors from ~100’s of nm in size to several mm’s
• Integration and assembly of metals, semi-conductors and polymers on a single system
• Ability to print biological material and integrate it with sensors
• Processing and quantitative analysis of surfaces
• Ability to grow and characterize nanolayers and nanowires
• Measurement of surface energy, electrical, optical, chemical and reliability properties.

The Karanassios Laboratory at University of Waterloo develops and tests miniaturized, micro- and nano- instruments based on micro-plasmas designed around micro-fluidics channels. Portable, battery-operated micro-plasmas are coupled with optics and photonics technologies for chemical analysis in the field. Such instruments are fabricated in-house and are designed to enable on-site analysis. An additional component of the research is on nano-materials as emerging contaminants, particularly in ground-water, and for this the lab hosts an ICP-MS as part of the SOWC.

In addition to the equipment and facility capacity, the Sensors node has technical support and research knowledge capacity available to design, prototype and test all types of sensors and sensing systems. Partners working with the Sensors node will have access to expertise in electrical, electrochemical, optical and chemical sensing, as well as integration of sensors and sub components into sensing systems.