·         Professor Junseop Shim (Department of Electronics Convergence Engineering) Develops Semiconductor Process Technology Without Photolithography

- Developed technology to create fine patterns without expensive photolithography processes, applied to biosensors -

- Paper published in Biosensors and Bioelectronics (JCR Q1 Ranking, Impact Factor: 10.7) -

Professor Junseop Shim’s research team in the Department of Electronics Convergence Engineering at Kwangwoon University has developed a technology that allows the creation of fine metal patterns without the expensive photolithography process and successfully applied this to develop biosensors capable of measuring the concentration of dementia markers in blood with high sensitivity. Through this technology, the research team produced high-sensitivity biosensors using fine metal patterns in a disposable form.

The research results have been published in the world-renowned SCI journal Biosensors and Bioelectronics in the field of biosensors.

 (Reference: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0956566323007339)

@ Process for Creating Fine Metal Patterns Without Semiconductor Processes and Its Use in Dementia Diagnosis Sensors

Creating fine metal patterns typically requires several stages of semiconductor processes, including photolithography. These processes require expensive equipment and use photoresists and developers, which are not environmentally friendly. However, to measure trace amounts of Alzheimer’s biomarkers in the blood, a highly sensitive biosensor is necessary, making the production of fine metal patterns crucial. However, biosensors developed in this way are expensive to manufacture, which makes disease testing with biosensors expensive.

To address this issue, Professor Shim’s team developed a method that uses molds with fine patterns to repeatedly stamp fine patterns onto plastic substrates. The plastic substrate is then coated with a thin metal film, and tape is applied so that the metal film comes into contact with the tape. Since the fine patterns are recessed, they do not touch the tape, and when the tape is peeled off, the metal remains only in the fine-patterned areas. This process allowed the team to create fine metal patterns on plastic substrates, which were then applied to dementia diagnostic biosensors, enabling the detection of two dementia markers at low concentrations of 3.9 pg/ml and 7.81 pg/ml, respectively.

Professor Shim stated, “To create a high-sensitivity biosensor that can measure dementia markers and be used as a disposable product, we developed a semiconductor fine-patterning technology that does not require photolithography. This technology can be applied not only to biosensors but also to the development of various electronic devices, including semiconductors, displays, and sensors that require fine metal patterns.”

This research was supported by the Korea Medical Device Development Fund, the Dementia Conquest R&D Project, and Kwangwoon University’s internal research funding. The research results were published in Biosensors and Bioelectronics, a prestigious journal published by Elsevier (JCR Q1 ranking, Impact Factor: 10.7).