Contact
    Start Publications A Time-Efficient Dip Coating Technique for the Deposition of ...
    ←  Publication Finder
    KSV NIMA

    A Time-Efficient Dip Coating Technique for the Deposition of Microgels onto the Optical Fiber Tip

    Year: 2018

    Journal: Fibers, Volume 6, DEC

    Authors: Scherino, Lorenzo; Giaquinto, Martino; Micco, Alberto; Aliberti, Anna; Bobeico, Eugenia; La Ferrara, Vera; Ruvo, Menotti; Ricciardi, Armando; Cusano, Andrea

    Keywords: optical fiber sensors; lab-on-fiber technology; microgel; dip coating technique

    The combination of responsive microgels and Lab-on-Fiber devices represents a valuable technological tool for developing advanced optrodes, especially useful for biomedical applications. Recently, we have reported on a fabrication method, based on the dip coating technique, for creating a microgels monolayer in a controlled fashion onto the fiber tip. In the wake of these results, with a view towards industrial applications, here we carefully analyze, by means of both morphological and optical characterizations, the effect of each fabrication step (fiber dipping, rinsing, and drying) on the microgels film properties. Interestingly, we demonstrate that it is possible to significantly reduce the duration (from 960 min to 31 min) and the complexity of the fabrication procedure, without compromising the quality of the microgels film at all. Repeatability studies are carried out to confirm the validity of the optimized deposition procedure. Moreover, the new procedure is successfully applied to different kinds of substrates (patterned gold and bare optical fiber glass), demonstrating the generality of our findings. Overall, the results presented in this work offer the possibility to improve of a factor similar to 30 the fabrication throughput of microgels-assisted optical fiber probes, thus enabling their possible exploitation in industrial applications.
    View publication