To produce a proof of concept for a working 1450nm IR-mediated PCR machine using off the shelf components and some 3D printing.
The absorbance spectrum of water has a series of peaks and valleys that have impacted life on earth as well as the physics humanity has discovered from the early days of Newton. Of these unique curve features, 1450nm light offers a quite high absorbance peak within reasonably attainable commercial light sources that offer high efficiency coupling of light energy into water. A light-driven PCR machine coupled via silica-based fiber optics and cooled via forced air could allow for arbitrarily scalable light tables friendly to laboratory automation systems and maintain energy and space efficiency in the process.
To explore this idea, I decided to make a small prototype and submit this design idea to Astera’s new bounty board for fast biology (Fast Biology Bounties – Niko McCarty). In this prototype I will work with various LED light sources at or around 1450nm and route the light onto standard PCR strip tubes containing 20uL of PCR reaction volume. The ultimate goal of this prototype is to successfully complete a standard boring PCR cycle within a reasonable time margin compared to a standard PCR machine.
Design Files on TinkerCAD: https://www.tinkercad.com/things/kJDFrrL9buR-irpcr-mk1