Simulation and experimental study of temprature lag time for Polymerase Chain Reaction instrument

Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) technology can replicate a special fragment of DNA by several thermal-cycles of the test samples in vitro; the performance of temperature control in thermal-cycles is a key to successful PCR reaction. In normal PCR instruments, a temperature sensor is located on the sample block; therefore, a lag time exists between the temperature measured by the sensor and the actual temperature of the test sample when they reach the target temperature. The main goal of this study is to obtain the lag time with the test sample in common volumes by using finite element analysis (FEA) software ABAQUS 6.8 and experiment study. The results indicate that extending the time of the platform period is preferable to the results of PCR reaction according to the simulation results.