Binary Fingerprints at Fluctuation-Enhanced Sensing
Abstract
We have developed a simple way to generate binary patterns based on spectral slopes in different frequency ranges at fluctuation-enhanced sensing. Such patterns can be considered as binary "fingerprints" of odors. The method has experimentally been demonstrated with a commercial semiconducting metal oxide (Taguchi) sensor exposed to bacterial odors (Escherichia coli and Anthrax-surrogate Bacillus subtilis) and processing their stochastic signals. With a single Taguchi sensor, the situations of empty chamber, tryptic soy agar (TSA) medium, or TSA with bacteria could be distinguished with 100% reproducibility. The bacterium numbers were in the range of 2.5 × 104–106. To illustrate the relevance for ultra-low power consumption, we show that this new type of signal processing and pattern recognition task can be implemented by a simple analog circuitry and a few logic gates with total power consumption in the microWatts range.
- Publication:
-
Sensors
- Pub Date:
- January 2010
- DOI:
- 10.3390/s100100361
- arXiv:
- arXiv:0912.5212
- Bibcode:
- 2010Senso..10..361C
- Keywords:
-
- fluctuation-enhanced sensing;
- semiconducting metal oxide sensors;
- nano-sensors;
- ultra-low power sensor systems;
- Physics - Biological Physics;
- Physics - Data Analysis;
- Statistics and Probability;
- Physics - Instrumentation and Detectors
- E-Print:
- submitted for publication