A Microsystem for Time-Resolved Fluorescence Analysis using CMOS Single-Photon Avalanche Diodes and Micro-LEDs

Although microfluidics and microarray technologies are revolutionizing the throughput, sensitivity and cost in many areas of biodiagnostics, they are still reliant on bulky and expensive fluorescence analysis instrumentation. Conventional fluorescence intensity measurements are prone to misinterpretation due to illumination and fluorophore concentration non-uniformities. Thus, there is a growing interest in time-resolved fluorescence detection, whereby the characteristic fluorescence decay time-constant (or lifetime) in response to an impulse excitation source is measured.