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Abstract

The present invention provides a microarray having a plurality of micro-locations for confining selected photophores, for example, biological molecules exhibiting fluorescence spectra. The microarray can further include an array of optoelectronic photodetectors each of which is optically coupled with at least one of the micro-locations to detect radiation, for example, fluorescence radiation, that is emitted from the photophores confined in that micro-location. Each photodetector includes a resonant cavity that is formed of a front reflector and/or a back reflector having distributed Bragg reflector structures and a photo-detecting element disposed in the resonant cavity. The microarray can utilize either external optical excitation sources, such as lasers, LEDs, or can contain its own excitation sources in an integrated structure containing both optical radiation emitters, such as, vertical cavity surface emitting lasers or resonant cavity LEDs, and resonant cavity photodetectors. The integrated emitters and detectors can be either coaxially or adjacently located. Further, the microarray can include either separate sample array and excitation/detector array plates, or a single sample/excitation/detector array plate in which the photophore-containing sample molecules can be deposited directly on the excitation/detector array.

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First Claim