Title :
A Novel Refractometric Sensor with High Sensitivity Using Nanofibers
Author :
Ye, Biqing ; Wu, Pinghui ; Sui, Chenghua
Author_Institution :
Dept. of Sci., Zhejiang Univ. of Technol., Hangzhou, China
Abstract :
In a nanoflber a considerable amount of the energy of the guided light is in form of evanescent waves. These waves are very sensitive to changes occurring in the external environment which makes nanofibers ideal for the development of highly sensitive sensors. Based on theoretical modelling, here a highly sensitive refractometric sensor employing a nanofiber-assembled Mach-Zehnder structure is suggested and investigated. The sensor is used to measure the refractive indices of isopropyl alcohol (IPA) solutions of different concentrations. Phase change of the guided mode caused by index change is obtained by solving Maxwell´s equation. In addition, the important parameters, including sensitivity and detection limit, are also estimated. The results show that the refractometric sensor exhibits the capability of detecting an index variation of 10-6. Our simulations are helpful for studying and developing new miniaturized optical sensors with high sensitivity.
Keywords :
Mach-Zehnder interferometers; Maxwell equations; bio-optics; biomedical measurement; fibre optic sensors; nanobiotechnology; nanofibres; nanophotonics; nanosensors; refractive index measurement; Mach-Zehnder structure; Maxwell equation; guided mode; isopropyl alcohol solution; nanobiomedicine; nanofibers; optical sensor; refractive index measurement; refractometric sensor; Biomedical measurements; Biomedical optical imaging; Biosensors; Maxwell equations; Nanostructures; Optical refraction; Optical sensors; Optical surface waves; Refractive index; Silicon compounds;
Conference_Titel :
Biomedical Engineering and Informatics, 2009. BMEI '09. 2nd International Conference on
Conference_Location :
Tianjin
Print_ISBN :
978-1-4244-4132-7
Electronic_ISBN :
978-1-4244-4134-1
DOI :
10.1109/BMEI.2009.5305310
