A compact multichannel spectrometer for label-free monitoring of biochips for point-of-care testing

We present three optical multi-channels spectrometers for the interrogation of label-free biosensors based on different kinds of transducers: resonant nanopillars (RNP), microring resonators (MRR), localized and propagative surface plasmon resonance (LSPR and SPR). Light is collected from the multi-channel biosensors (up to 12-channels) with optical fibers and is remapped to a packed straight line forming the input slit of the spectrometers. The combination of high resolution CMOS sensors and embedded signal processing makes it possible to extract the resonant wavelengths of the transducers with a precision in the range of 1-20 pm depending on the type of transducer.The performance of the three transducer / spectrometer systems has been evaluated in the framework of EU and regional projects for the monitoring of chemical pollutants found in oceanic waters (FP7 - EnviGuard), crop health monitoring (Interreg France-Wallonie-Vlaanderen - SmartBioControl/BioSens) and bioreactor monitoring (EutoTransBio -APTACHIP).