Integrated terahertz multiparameter sensors using fiber/frequency selective surface couplers

Abstract

We propose using THz frequency selective surfaces interrogated with THz subwavelength optical fibers as integrated sensors for monitoring of the optical properties of thick optically non-transparent films that are brought into contact with such sensors. Changes in the test film thickness and absorption losses can be measured simultaneously by interpreting variations in the spectral resonant features in the fiber transmission and reflection spectra. In particular, changes in the film thickness induce strong shifts in the fiber transmission peaks, while changes in the film absorption induce notable amplitude variations in the fiber reflection peaks. When applied to the problem of monitoring the thickness and humidity content of paper sheets, the proposed system shows a sensitivity of 1.5 GHz/10 μm to changes in the paper’s thickness and a sensitivity of 0.6/(% of water by volume) to changes in the paper’s humidity. We estimate the detection limit of our device to be 10 μm for the paper thickness variation and 0.02% (of water by volume) for the paper humidity variation. The proposed sensor is implemented in the spirit of integrated optics, where a point device based on the frequency selective surface is interrogated with a THz fiber that is used for remote delivery of THz radiation.