A nucleic acid detection plate comprises a piezoelectric sensor and at least a pipe flowing through the surface of the piezoelectric sensor, two valves intervally installed on the pipe relative to the upstream end of the piezoelectric sensor, the nucleic acid to be detected is blocked in the pipe between the two valves for isothermal amplification; the nucleic acid detection system comprises the nucleic acid detection plate described above, a thermostat capable of accommodating the nucleic acid detection plate; and a signal processor capable of being date connected to the piezoelectric sensor. The inventive method simplifies device structure through coordinated detection by combination of thermostatic amplification and piezoelectric sensing, and improves detection efficiency.

Some aspects of the present disclosure feature a sensing device (e.g. for temperature, moisture or detection of substances) comprising a magnetic bias layer, a resonator, a spacer, and an environmental change receptor. The spacer is disposed between the magnetic bias layer and the resonator. At least one of the resonator surfaces has a predefined channel. The environmental change receptor is disposed proximate to the predefined channel. In response to a change in environment, the environmental change receptor distributes along a part of the channel.

Redox of an analyte is coupled with redox of a precipitation precursor to generate a precipitating molecule that precipitates on the surface of a thin film bulk acoustic resonance (TFBAR) to allow mass detection of the precipitation molecule as a surrogate for the analyte. This disclosure describes, among other things, detection of an analyte using a TFBAR operating at a high frequency without direct binding of the analyte on a surface of the TBAR. Detection of the analyte is indirect with a precipitating molecule serving as a surrogate for the analyte.

A sensing sensor includes a wiring board, a piezoelectric resonator, and a gel-like protective agent. The piezoelectric resonator has one surface side on which an adsorbing film is formed. The adsorbing film is constituted of biomolecules. The protective agent is disposed so as to cover a surface of the adsorbing film. The protective agent is configured to suppress an inactivation of the biomolecules. The channel forming member is disposed so as to cover a region of the one surface side of the wiring board including the piezoelectric resonator. The channel forming member includes an injection port of the sample solution. The flow passage is disposed between the wiring board and the channel forming member. The flow passage is configured to allow the sample solution supplied to the injection port to flow from one end side to another end side on the one surface side of the piezoelectric resonator.

A piezoelectric plate sensor comprising a piezoelectric layer; two electrodes; and an insulation layer. The insulation layer is produced by soaking the piezoelectric layer and two electrodes in a mercaptopropyltrimethoxysilane solution with an amount of water from 0.1 v/v. % to about 1 v/v % and at pH from about 8 to about 150 for a period from about 8 to about 15 hours, and the mercaptopropyltrimethoxysilane solution has a concentration of mercaptopropyltrimethoxysilane from about 0.01 v/v % to about 0.5 v/v %. A method of detecting a biomolecule in a sample using the piezoelectric plate sensor in particular, that of detecting a genetic marker with PCR sensitivity and specificity without the need of DNA isolation or amplification is also provided. The piezoelectric plate sensor may be used to diagnose various diseases including breast cancer, myocardial infarction, diarrhea, Clostridium difficile infection, and hepatitis B infection.

A surface acoustic wave resonant sensor for measuring a sample comprising a single port surface acoustic wave (SAW) resonator comprising an interdigital transducer and at least one reflective grating. The sensor is provided with a region for receiving the sample, said region being in communication with the at least one reflective grating and the IDT is separated acoustically and electrically from the region for receiving a sample such that the IDT is not mass sensitive to the sample. The sensor is especially suitable for bio sensing applications.

A measuring assembly and method for layer thickness measurement of a layer applied to a substrate by means of a vapor deposition method includes a measuring head which is provided with at least one vibration plate, an extraction line which can be coupled in a gas-conducting or vapor-conducting manner with a first end having a vacuum chamber for the vapor deposition method and which can be coupled in a gas-conducting or vapor-conducting manner with an opposite second end having the measuring head, wherein the extraction line includes at least one heating section or at least one cooling section.

Disclosed are methods for determining and classifying aircraft air contaminants comprising one or more of: turbine engine oil, hydraulic fluid and deicing fluid using contaminant analyzers comprising a contaminant collector comprising a membrane and a heater vaporizing the contaminants; a gravimetric sensor generating a response when contaminant mass is added to or removed from the sensor, the sensor receiving contaminants desorbed from the heated membrane; a frequency measurement device, measuring the response generated by the sensor as the contaminant is added to and removed from the sensor; a computer readable medium bearing a contaminant recognition program and calibration data; a processor executing the program, the program including a module classifying contaminants by type, and a module using the data for comparison with magnitude of response generated by the sensor to calculate contaminant concentration; and, a pump, generating flow of air through the collector before and after the membrane is heated.

A method of detecting the positions of a plurality of probes. An input beam is directed into an optical device and transformed into a plurality of output beamlets which are not parallel with each other. Each output beamlet is split into a sensing beamlet and an associated reference beamlet. Each of the sensing beamlets is directed onto an associated one of the probes with an objective lens to generate a reflected beamlet which is combined with its associated reference beamlet to generate an interferogram. Each interferogram is measured to determine the position of an associated one of the probes. A similar method is used to actuate a plurality of probes. A scanning motion is generated between the probes and the sample. An input beam is directed into an optical device and transformed into a plurality of actuation beamlets which are not parallel with each other.

The invention relates to a method for providing a structural condition of a structure, comprising providing an excitation wave generator; providing an excitation wave sensor; injecting an excitation burst wave into the structure using the excitation wave generator; obtaining a measured propagated excitation burst wave using the excitation wave sensor; correlating the measured propagated excitation burst wave with one of a plurality of theoretical dispersed versions of the excitation burst wave; and providing an indication of the structural condition of the structure corresponding to the correlated measured propagated excitation burst wave. The method may offer a better localization of the reflection points and thus of the potential defects present in a structure under inspection, when compared with a group velocity-based or time-of-flight (ToF) approach. The method may be particularly useful for structural health monitoring (SHM) and Non-Destructive Testing (NDT). The method may also enable determination of the mechanical properties of the structure.