A Ratiometric Sensor Using Single Chirality Near‐Infrared Fluorescent Carbon Nanotubes: Application to In Vivo Monitoring

Advances in the separation and functionalization of single walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) by their electronic type have enabled the development of ratiometric fluorescent SWCNT sensors for the first time. Herein, single chirality SWCNT are independently functionalized to recognize either nitric oxide (NO), hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)), or no analyte (remaining invariant) to create optical sensor responses from the ratio of distinct emission peaks. This ratiometric approach provides a measure of analyte concentration, invariant to the absolute intensity emitted from the sensors and hence, more stable to external noise and detection geometry. Two distinct ratiometric sensors are demonstrated: one version for H(2)O(2), the other for NO, each using 7,6 emission, and each containing an invariant 6,5 emission wavelength. To functionalize these sensors from SWCNT isolated from the gel separati…