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.