Functionalization of indium-tin-oxide electrodes by laser-nanostructured gold thin films for biosensing applications

•ITO electrodes modified by NP arrays prepared by laser dewetting of thin Au films.•Enhanced activity, linear response and high sensitivity towards glucose.•Promising biosensor material AuNP-modified ITO of improved performance. The production and properties of the indium-tin-oxide (ITO) electrodes functionalized by Au nanoparticle (NP) arrays of a relatively large area formed by pulsed laser nanostructuring of thin gold films are reported and discussed. The SEM inspection of modified electrodes reveals the presence of the nearly spherical and disc-shaped particles of dimensions in the range of 40–120nm. The NP-array geometry can be controlled by selection of the laser processing conditions. It is shown that particle size and packing density of the array are important factors which determine the electrode performance. In the case of NP-modified electrodes the peak current corresponding to the glucose direct oxidation process shows rise with increasing glucose concentration markedly higher comparing to the reference Au disc electrode. The detection limit reaches 12μM and linear response of the sensor is observed from 0.1 to 47mM that covers the normal physiological range of the blood sugar detection.