Bottom-up designed porous coaxial twin-electrodes for efficient redox cycling

Abstract

Redox cycling (RC) is a powerful tool capable of amplifying faradaic currents in electroanalytical measurements, thus allowing an enhancement of sensitivity through fast multiple sequential oxidation and reduction reactions of a redox-active analyte. Present state-of-the-art RC devices are mostly based on planar electrode geometries either in 2D or 3D configurations, requiring cleanroom facilities and expensive microfabrication techniques. Here, the electrochemical elaboration and characterization of a 3D coaxial macroporous twin-electrode is reported, obtained by following a low-cost bottom-up approach. A nanoengineered highly organized porous material is the basis for the design of two threaded cylindrical porous gold microelectrodes with a gap in the micrometer range that can be fine-tuned. The potentials of the outer and inner electrodes are biased at values above and below the redox potential of the analyte so that a given molecule can participate several times in the electron exchange reaction by shuttling between both electrodes. The resulting signal amplification, combined with a straightforward synthesis strategy of the electrode architecture, allows envisioning numerous (bio)electroanalytical applications.

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ORCID for Philip N. Bartlett: orcid.org/0000-0002-7300-6900

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