Optical biosensing systems for a biological living body

Abstract

Abstract With the development of technology, biosensors are increasingly used in the biomedical field. Due to the high sensitivity of optical signals, good stability, high signal‐to‐noise ratio, and different spectral characteristics of different analytes, optical biosensors can achieve direct and real‐time detection of analytes with high specificity compared with traditional analytical techniques. In view of the rapid development of optical biosensors for in vivo applications and their promising future, we have attempted to summarize the working principles and recent advances in application in humans, with the aim of helping readers to gain an in‐depth and detailed understanding of optical biosensors developed in recent years for applications in the biological living body. In this review, we focus on some of the current widely used and promising optical biosensors, including colorimetric biosensors, fluorescence biosensors, and surface‐enhanced‐Raman‐scattering‐based biosensors. The working principles for each type of optical biosensor are concisely described and the application of the biosensor in the living body is summarized by category. We conclude by looking at the prospects of in vivo applications of optical biosensors.

Keywords

• colorimetric
• fluorescence
• optical biosensor
• SERS