Researchers determined that using integrated circuits, including one shown right of the US quarter and below the label ‘CHIP1’ in an electronic nose will make the device more affordable. Credit: UT Dallas
Researchers at Texas Analog Center of Excellence (TxACE) at UT Dallas are working to develop an affordable electronic nose that can be used in breath analysis for a wide range of health diagnosis. While devices that can conduct breath analysis using compound semiconductors exist, they are bulky and too costly for commercial use. The researchers determined that using CMOS integrated circuits technology will make the electronic nose more affordable.
CMOS is the integrated circuits technology used to manufacture the bulk of electronics that have made smartphones, tablets and other devices possible. A rotational spectrometer generates and transmits electromagnetic waves over a wide range of frequencies, and analyzes how the waves are attenuated to determine what chemicals are present as well as their concentrations in a sample. The system can detect low levels of chemicals present in human breath. Breaths contain gases from the stomach and that come out of blood when it comes into contact with air in the lungs. The breath test is a blood test without taking blood samples. Breath contains information about practically every part of a human body.
The electronic nose can detect gas molecules with more specificity and sensitivity than Breathalyzers, which can confuse acetone for ethanol in the breath. The distinction is important, for example, for patients with Type1 diabetes who have high concentrations of acetone in their breath.
The researchers envision the CMOS-based device will first be used in industrial settings and then in doctors’ offices and hospitals. As the technology matures, they could become household devices. Dr. O said the need for blood work and gastrointestinal tests could be reduced, and diseases could be detected earlier, lowering the costs of health care. The researchers are working toward construction of a prototype programmable electronic nose that can be made available for beta testing sometime in early 2018. http://www.utdallas.edu/news/2016/6/16-32086_Scientific-Gains-May-Make-Electronic-Nose-the-Next_story-wide.html?WT.mc_id=NewsHomePage
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