High-Sensitivity Triple-Channel Optical Fiber Surface Plasmon Resonance Sensor

Abstract

Optical fiber surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensors are widely used for refractive index (RI) sensing, thanks to their high sensitivity. However, with the increasing demand for multiple analytes detection and sensor integration, a traditional single-channel optical fiber SPR sensor is outdated. We propose and demonstrate a novel triple-channel optical fiber SPR sensor with high sensitivity. The sensor is fabricated with side-polished single-mode fiber (SMF), where the sensing film consists of a layer of gold nanofilm and a layer of TiO2 nanofilm. The resonance wavelength range of the SPR sensing zone can be adjusted significantly by changing the TiO2 nanofilm thickness. Experimentally, by cascading three sensing zones whose TiO2 nanofilm thicknesses are 10, 30, and 60 nm, respectively, a triple-channel SPR sensor is realized. The average sensitivities of three sensing channels reach up to 2637.8, 3962.2, and 6097.3 nm/RIU in the RI range of 1.333–1.370 RIU, which is superior to most current multichannel SPR sensors. Besides, three sensing channels are independent without crosstalk. The proposed triple-channel SPR sensor has great potential in biological and chemical sensing fields, especially in multiple analytes detection applications.