by Linley Erin Hall

NJ Tao and colleagues have developed two different sensors based on the tiny quartz tuning forks used in wristwatches. When struck, the two prongs of the fork vibrate, moving closer together and further apart.

In the first sensor, the researchers cover the surface of the tuning fork with a polymer to which the target molecule will bind. When binding occurs, the fork increases in mass, which changes its vibration. This mechanical signal indicates that binding has occurred.

The ASU researchers have also created a sensor that uses a polymer wire strung between the two prongs of the tuning fork rather than the polymer coating. When a molecule binds to the wire, it becomes either stiffer or softer, which also changes the vibration of the tuning fork.

Read more about Tao's research in "Tiny tasty tunes: Sensing the world one molecule at a time."