# Lipid Multilayer Grating Arrays Integrated by Nanointaglio for Vapor Sensing by an Optical Nose

## TL;DR

This paper introduces a new method to create sensor arrays using lipid structures that can detect different vapors through optical signals.

## Contribution

The study demonstrates the use of nanointaglio to integrate chemically diverse lipid gratings for vapor sensing via an optical nose.

## Key findings

- Sensor arrays with six lipid formulations successfully distinguished vapors like water, ethanol, and acetone.
- Principal component analysis showed clear clustering of responses, confirming the arrays' ability to differentiate analytes.
- Nanointaglio enabled uniform height fabrication of lipid gratings from different materials.

## Abstract

Lipid multilayer gratings are recently invented nanomechanical sensor elements that are capable of transducing molecular binding to fluid lipid multilayers into optical signals in a label free manner due to shape changes in the lipid nanostructures. Here, we show that nanointaglio is suitable for the integration of chemically different lipid multilayer gratings into a sensor array capable of distinguishing vapors by means of an optical nose. Sensor arrays composed of six different lipid formulations are integrated onto a surface and their optical response to three different vapors (water, ethanol and acetone) in air as well as pH under water is monitored as a function of time. Principal component analysis of the array response results in distinct clustering indicating the suitability of the arrays for distinguishing these analytes. Importantly, the nanointaglio process used here is capable of producing lipid gratings out of different materials with sufficiently uniform heights for the fabrication of an optical nose.