Direct electrical detection of antigen–antibody binding on diamond and silicon substrates using electrical impedance spectroscopy

The integration of biological molecules with semiconducting materials such as silicon and diamond has great potential for the development of new types of bioelectronic devices, such as biosensors and bioactuators. We have investigated the electrical properties of the antibody–antigen modified diamond and silicon surfaces using electrical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Frequency dependent measurements at the open-circuit potential show: (a) significant changes in impedance at frequency >104 Hz when the surface immobilized IgG was exposed to anti-IgG, and (b) only little or no change when exposed to anti-IgM. Mott–Schottky measurements at high frequency (200 kHz) show that the impedance is dominated by the space charge layer of the semiconducting substrates. Silicon surfaces modified in a similar manner to the diamond surface are compared; n-type and p-type samples show complementary behavior, as expected for a field effect. We also show it is possible to directly observe antigen–antibody interaction at a fixed frequency in real time, and with no additional labeling.