biostudies-literatureUnknown12(1)Azuma TTemperature sensing is a promising method of enhancing the detection sensitivity of lateral flow immunoassay (LFIA) for point-of-care testing. A temperature increase of more than 100 °C can be readily achieved by photoexcitation of reporters like gold nanoparticles (GNPs) or colored latex beads (CLBs) on LFIA strips with a laser power below 100 mW. Despite its promise, processes involved in the photothermal detection have not yet been well-characterized. Here, we provide a fundamental understanding of this thermometric assay using non-fluorescent CLBs as the reporters deposited on nitrocellulose membrane. From a measurement for the dependence of temperature rises on the number density of membrane-bound CLBs, we found a 1.3-fold (and 3.2-fold) enhancement of the light absorption by red (andScientific reports3905https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC8913781biostudies-literatureThermometric lateral flow immunoassay with colored latex beads as reporters for COVID-19 testing.PMC8913781Wang YLChen OYHui YYAzuma TChang HCfalseThermometric lateral flow immunoassay with colored latex beads as reporters for COVID-19 testing.Temperature sensing is a promising method of enhancing the detection sensitivity of lateral flow immunoassay (LFIA) for point-of-care testing. A temperature increase of more than 100 °C can be readily achieved by photoexcitation of reporters like gold nanoparticles (GNPs) or colored latex beads (CLBs) on LFIA strips with a laser power below 100 mW. Despite its promise, processes involved in the photothermal detection have not yet been well-characterized. Here, we provide a fundamental understanding of this thermometric assay using non-fluorescent CLBs as the reporters deposited on nitrocellulose membrane. From a measurement for the dependence of temperature rises on the number density of membrane-bound CLBs, we found a 1.3-fold (and 3.2-fold) enhancement of the light absorption by red (and2022-01-01T00:00:00Z2022 Mar2025-04-05T11:07:39.701Z2025-04-05T11:07:39.701ZS-EPMC89137813527328610.1038/s41598-022-07963-1