Practical Implications of using Nanoelectrodes for Bioanalytical Measurements

The performance of a 50 nm thick nanoband electrode structure which forms an array of nano-scale electrodes has been investigated for bioelectrochemical applications, specifically the performance related to the detection of three common bioelectrochemical redox species, ferrocene carboxylic acid, hydrogen peroxide and 4-aminophenol. The detection limits were established to be 89, 2 and 36 × 10−9 mol dm−3 respectively, which is consistent with the increased sensitivity of nanoelectrode systems compared to larger electrodes. The limit of detection determined for H2O2 is comparable to those previously obtained by using both nanowires and modified electrodes for enhanced detection suggesting these arrays are highly suited for use in bioanalysis. This relatively simple nanoband electrode architecture is shown to be capable of fast scan cyclic voltammetric detection up to 10 V s−1 while at the same time being relatively insensitive to hydrodynamic perturbations. The paper considers the implications of these enhanced performance characteristics within bioanalytical measurement systems and their practical benefits in the development of electroanalytical devices.