Optical and fluidics systems have been developed as central components for an automated array biosensor. Disposable planar waveguides are patterned with immobilized capture antibodies using a physically isolated patterning (PIP) method. The PIP method enables simultaneous deposition of several antibodies and completely circumvents cross-immobilization problems encountered with other array deposition processes. A multi-channel fluidics cell allows numerous assays to be performed on the patterned waveguide. The sensing arrays are optically interrogated using a diode laser with a tailored output to optimize coupling to and maximize excitation uniformity within the waveguide. A patterned cladding is employed to optically isolate the waveguide from perturbations induced by the permanently attached flow cells. Compact optics image the evanescently excited fluorescence onto a large area, cooled CCD array. The image data is processed and automated signal analysis corrects for local background and noise variations.
