Electrode miniaturization

Parylene s use in the medical field is linked to electronics. Certain pacemaker manufacturers use it as a protective conformal coating on pacemaker circuitry (69). The coated circuitry is sealed in a metal can, so that the parylene coating serves only as a backup should the primary barrier leak. There is also interest in its use as an electrode insulation in the fabrication of miniature electrodes for long-term implantation to record or to stimulate neurons in the central or peripheral nervous system, as the "front end" of experimental neural prostheses (70). One report describes the 3-yr survival of functioning parylene-coated electrodes in the brain of a monkey (71). 

Presentiy, multilayer capacitors and packaging make up more than half the electronic ceramics market. For multilayer capacitors, more than 20 biUion units are manufactured a year, outnumbering by far any other electronic ceramic component. Multilayer ceramics and hybrid packages consist of alternating layers of dielectric and metal electrodes, as shown in Figures 5 and 6, respectively. The driving force for these compact configurations is miniaturization. 

Multilayer Capacitors. Multilayer capacitors (MLC), at greater than 30 biUion units per year, outnumber any other ferroelectric device in production. Multilayer capacitors consist of alternating layers of dielectric material and metal electrodes, as shown in Figure 7. The reason for this configuration is miniaturization of the capacitor. Capacitance is given by... 

Immersion electrodes are the most common glass electrodes. These are roughly cylindrical and consist of a barrel or stem of inert glass that is sealed at the lower end to a tip, which is often hemispherical, of special pH-responsive glass. The tip is completely immersed in the solution during measurements. Miniature and microelectrodes are also used widely, particularly in physiological studies. Capillary electrodes permit the use of small samples and provide protection from exposure to air during the measurements, eg, for the determination of blood pH. This type of electrode may be provided with a water jacket for temperature control. 

The next generation of amperomethc enzyme electrodes may weU be based on immobilization techniques that are compatible with microelectronic mass-production processes and are easy to miniaturize (42). Integration of enzymes and mediators simultaneously should improve the electron-transfer pathway from the active site of the enzyme to the electrode. 

Miniaturization is a growing trend in the field of analytical chemistry. The miniaturization of working electrodes not only has obvious practical advantages, but also opens some fundamentally new possibilities (77-79). The term microelectrode is reserved here for electrodes with at least one dimension not greater than 25 pm. 

Miniaturized catheter-type ISE sensors, such as the implantable probe shown in Figure 5-20 represent the preferred approach for routine clinical in-vivo monitoring of blood electrolytes. For these intravascular measurements the reference electrode is placed outside die artery (in die external arm of die catheter), tints obviating biocompatability and drift problems associated with its direct contact with the blood. 

Microfabrication technology has made a considerable impact on the miniaturization of electrochemical sensors and systems. Such technology allows replacement of traditional bulky electrodes and beaker-type cells with mass-producible, easy-to-use sensor strips. These strips can be considered as disposable electrochemical cells onto which the sample droplet is placed. The development of microfabricated electrochemical systems has the potential to revolutionize the field of electroanaly-tical chemistry. 

Miniaturization, 128, 163, 193 Minigrid electrode, 41, 52 Mixed-salt electrodes, 159 Modified electrodes, 118, 121 Monensin, 155 Monolayers, 117, 118, 173 Multichannel electrodes, 93, 94 Multipotentiostat, 106, 198 Mutation detection, 185... 

A glass electrode, a thin-walled glass bulb containing an electrolyte, is much easier to use than a hydrogen electrode and has a potential that varies linearly with the pH of the solution outside the glass bulb (Fig. 12.11). Often there is a calomel electrode built into the probe that makes contact with the test solution through a miniature salt bridge. A pH meter therefore usually has only one probe, which forms a complete electrochemical cell once it is dipped into a solution. The meter is calibrated with a buffer of known pH, and the measured cell emf is then automatically converted into the pH of the solution, which is displayed. 

Electrochemistry is the basis of many important and modem applications and scientific developments such as nanoscale machining (fabrication of miniature devices with three dimensional control in the nanometer scale), electrochemistry at the atomic scale, scanning tunneling microscopy, transformation of energy in biological cells, selective electrodes for the determination of ions, and new kinds of electrochemical cells, batteries and fuel cells. 

A major challenge and important application is nano-wiring of electronic circuits mediated by self-assembled DNA or protein structures providing condncting connection between miniaturized electrodes [51,52]. The use of self-assembled DNA for wiring two... 

Micro reaction systems may help to overcome or at least reduce some of the above-mentioned limitations [69]. Electrochemical micro reactors with miniature flow cells where electrodes approach to micrometer distances should have much improved field homogeneity. As a second result of confined space processing, the addition of a conducting salt may be substantially reduced. In addition, benefits from a uniform flow distribution and efficient heat transfer may be utilized. 

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