On-chip Refractive Index Research Articles

Zero-crosstalk silicon photonic refractive indexsensor with subwavelength gratings.

Silicon photonic index sensors have received significant attention for label-free bio and gas-sensing applications, offering cost-effective and scalable solutions. Here, we introduce an ultra-compact silicon photonic refractive index sensor that leverages zero-crosstalk singularity responses enabled by subwavelength gratings. The subwavelength gratings are precisely engineered to achieve an anisotropic perturbation-led zero-crosstalk, resulting in a single transmission dip singularity in the spectrum that is independent of device length. The sensor is optimized for the transverse magnetic mode operation, where the subwavelength gratings are arranged perpendicular to the propagation direction to support a leaky-like mode and maximize the evanescent field interaction with the analyte space. Experimental results demonstrate a high wavelength sensitivity of - 410nm/RIU and an intensity sensitivity of 395dB/RIU, with a compact device footprint of approximately 82.8μm2. Distinct from other resonant and interferometric sensors, our approach provides an FSR-free single-dip spectral response on a small device footprint, overcoming common challenges faced by traditional sensors, such as signal/phase ambiguity, sensitivity fading, limited detection range, and the necessity for large device footprints. This makes our sensor ideal for simplified intensity interrogation. The proposed sensor holds promise for a range of on-chip refractive index sensing applications, from gas to biochemical detection, representing a significant step towards efficient and miniaturized photonic sensing solutions.

Dual-mode microring resonator for humidity sensing with temperature compensation

On-chip refractive index (RI) sensors, which use resonant shifts of micro-cavities to detect environment change, have the advantages of high sensitivity, real-time detection, and compact footprints. However, the cross-sensitivity of the temperature variation severely interferes with sensing results. In this paper, we present a dual-mode microring resonator (MRR) with a cladding layer of polyhexamethylene biguanide hydrochloride (PHMB) for relative humidity (RH) sensing to overcome the limitation. Specifically, the influences of the RH-induced RI change of the PHMB cladding and temperature variations on the effective RIs of TE0 and TE1 modes can be decoupled based on the transmission spectral measurements. Using this method, we have demonstrated the temperature-compensated RH sensing which achieved a maximum sensitivity of −54.7 pm/%RH and a limit of detection of 0.8 %RH under the room temperature condition. Besides, a computational model based on the sensing response of the device was proposed and verified, which demonstrated that the structure can accurately measure changes in RH and temperature simultaneously. Our methodology has the potential to become a new reference for developing on-chip RI sensors with temperature compensation.

Two-peak envelope spectrum of a subwavelength grating microring resonator for wide-range and high-sensitivity refractive index sensing

The detectable range and sensitivity play a key role in the accuracy and range of applications available for lab-on-a-chip sensing systems. Here, we propose and numerically demonstrate an on-chip refractive index sensor simultaneously possessing wide detectable range and high sensitivity through monitoring the two-peak envelope spectrum of a subwavelength grating microring resonator. The principle lies in the combination of the envelope spectrum tracking scheme and the light field releasing in subwavelength grating waveguides. The structure of the subwavelength grating microring resonator is designed to adjust the wavelength dependence of its critical coupling condition, so that the two-peak envelope spectrum can be formed and centered at critically coupled wavelengths. By probing the drift of the two-peak envelope spectrum within the C+L band (1530–1625 nm), we lift the free spectral range constraint on the detectable range and broaden it up to 0.46 RIU. Meanwhile, a sensitivity of 444 nm/RIU is achieved. This investigation provides an attractive candidate for high performance integrated sensors, and thus may pave the way for lab-on-chip sensing, especially in application scenarios demanding both wide detectable range and high sensitivity.

Comparative Study of Photonic Platforms and Devices for On-Chip Sensing

Chemical and biological detection is now an indispensable task in many fields. On-chip refractive index (RI) optical sensing is a good candidate for mass-scale, low-cost sensors with high performance. While most literature works focus on enhancing the sensors’ sensitivity and detection limit, other important parameters that determine the sensor’s yield, reliability, and cost-effectiveness are usually overlooked. In this work, we present a comprehensive study of the different integrated photonic platforms, namely silica, silicon nitride, and silicon. Our study aims to determine the best platform for on-chip RI sensing, taking into consideration the different aspects affecting not only the sensing performance of the sensor, but also the sensor’s reliability and effectiveness. The study indicates the advantages and drawbacks of each platform, serving as a guideline for RI sensing design. Modal analysis is used to determine the sensitivity of the waveguide to medium (analyte) index change, temperature fluctuations, and process variations. The study shows that a silicon platform is the best choice for high medium sensitivity and a small footprint. On the other hand, silica is the best choice for a low-loss, low-noise, and fabrication-tolerant design. The silicon nitride platform is a compromise of both. We then define a figure of merit (FOM) that includes the waveguide sensitivity to the different variations, losses, and footprint to compare the different platforms. The defined FOM shows that silicon is the best candidate for RI sensing. Finally, we compare the optical devices used for RI sensing, interferometers, and resonators. Our analysis shows that resonator-based devices can achieve much better sensing performance and detection range, due to their fine Lorentzian spectrum, with a small footprint. Interferometer based-sensors allow engineering of the sensors’ performance and can also be designed to minimize phase errors, such as temperature and fabrication variations, by careful design of the interferometer waveguides. Our analysis and conclusions are also verified by experimental data from other published work.

On-Chip Refractive Index Sensor With Ultra-High Sensitivity Based on Sub-Wavelength Grating Racetrack Microring Resonators and Vernier Effect

An approach to optimize the sensitivity and the limit of detection of on-chip refractive index sensor is proposed and demonstrated based on sub-wavelength grating racetrack microring resonator and Vernier effect. The sub-wavelength grating waveguide can reduce the structure limitation of the light field, which is beneficial to enhancing the interaction between the photon and analyte. By optimizing the parameters of the sub-wavelength grating racetrack microring resonator, the sensitivity of the sensor could be significantly improved to 664 nm/RIU. Subsequently, capitalizing the Vernier effect, a two cascaded microring-based refractive index sensor is designed. Owing to the Vernier effect, the wavelength spacings among the overlapped peaks could be effectively amplified more than ten times, leading to a high performance. The results demonstrate that an ultra-high sensitivity of 7061 nm/RIU and a low limit of detection of 1.74 × 10 <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">−5</sup> RIU. With the advantages of ultra-high sensitivity and low limit of detection, the integrated device has important value in the fields of environmental monitoring and biosensors.

Design of an on-chip sensor operating near the dispersion turning point with ultrahigh sensitivity

In this paper, an on-chip refractive index (RI) sensor based on the asymmetric Mach–Zehnder interferometer (MZI) is proposed for sensitivity enhancement. The outstanding sensing performance is obtained by achieving the dispersion turning point (DTP). We analyze the necessary conditions for DTP formation, the transmission spectrum characteristics, and the sensing performance near the DTP. The results show that when the group index difference between the reference arm and the sensing arm is close to zero, high RI sensitivity can be obtained near the DTP. Since the resonance peaks on both sides of the DTP have different shift directions with the change of RI, by tracing the wavelength shift between the two resonance peaks, the RI sensitivity and the limit of detection can reach 40960 nm/refractive index unit (RIU) and 4.88 × 10 − 7 R I U . The proposed asymmetric MZI sensor provides a potential on-chip platform for high-performance RI sensing.

Numerical investigation of an optimized plasmonic on-chip refractive index sensor for temperature and blood group detection

A highly sensitive sensor focused on two Metal-Insulator-Metal (MIM) waveguides and three quadrilateral cavities sandwiched perpendicularly in between the MIM waveguides is proposed. Fano resonance induced by the coherent superposition of the narrow band spectral response and broadband spectral response, excites the structural transmission characteristics. The Finite Element Method (FEM) is used to numerically investigate the transmission characteristics and sensitivity of the refractive index sensor for different configurations. The linear relationship between resonant wavelength and refractive index is used to sense the materials. By optimizing the structural parameters, a numerical evaluation of the refractive index sensitivity (S) up to 1556 nm/RIU, and associate figure of merit (FOM) of 14.83 is recorded. The device is also explored as a temperature sensor with 0.61 nm/°C sensitivity. Since ethanol is used as a sensing medium, the operating range of the sensor is between −114.3 °C and 78 °C, melting and boiling temperature of ethanol. To detect human blood groups using the proposed sensor, a mathematical model is developed, which shows impressive performance for the detection of human blood groups very precisely. Compact size, ultrafine sensitivity, and sharp Fano peak profile make the proposed sensor an ideal candidate for on-chip sensors.

Ultra-sensitive refractive index gas sensor with functionalized silicon nitride photonic circuits

Portable and cost-effective gas sensors are gaining demand for a number of environmental, biomedical, and industrial applications, yet current devices are confined into specialized labs and cannot be extended to general use. Here, we demonstrate a part-per-billion-sensitive refractive index gas sensor on a photonic chip based on silicon nitride waveguides functionalized with a mesoporous silica top-cladding layer. Low-concentration chemical vapors are detected by monitoring the output spectral pattern of an integrated unbalanced Mach-Zehnder interferometer having one coated arm exposed to the gas vapors. We retrieved a limit of detection of 65 ppb, 247 ppb, and 1.6 ppb for acetone, isopropyl alcohol, and ethanol, respectively. Our on-chip refractive index sensor provides, to the best of our knowledge, an unprecedented limit of detection for low gas concentrations based on photonic integrated circuits. As such, our results herald the implementation of compact, portable, and inexpensive devices for on-site and real-time environmental monitoring and medical diagnostics.

Surface third-harmonic generation at a two-photon-polymerized micro-interferometer for real-time on-chip refractive index monitoring.

A micro-interferometer based on surface third-harmonic generation (THG) at two-photon-polymerized SU-8 cuboids for real-time monitoring of the refractive index changes of target fluids, which can be easily integrated into microfluidic photonic systems, is demonstrated. The third-harmonic (TH) interferogram is selectively generated only from the target volume by a simple vertical pumping, thereby eliminating the needs for complicated coupling and alignments. The dependence of the generated TH to the input pump polarization state is thoroughly investigated. The THG efficiency by linearly polarized excitation is found to be 2.6 × 10-7, which is the most efficient at the SU-8-air interface and independent of the input polarization direction. The THG efficiency from the SU-8-air interface is 12.17 times higher than that from the glass-air interface and 4.93 times higher than that from the SU-8-glass interface. Real-time monitoring of argon gas pressure is demonstrated using the micro- interferometer. The surface TH from two-photon-polymerized 3D structures offers novel design flexibility to the nonlinear optical light sources for microfluidic and microelectronic devices.

On-chip refractive index cytometry for whole-cell deformability discrimination.

On-chip high-throughput phenotyping of single cells has gained a lot of interest recently due to the discrimination capability of label-free biomarkers such as whole-cell deformability and refractive index. Here we present on-chip refractive index cytometry (RIC) for whole-cell deformability at a high measurement rate. We have further exploited a previously published on-chip optical characterization method which enhances cellular discrimination through the refractive index measurement of single cells. The proposed on-chip RIC can simultaneously probe the cellular refractive index, effective volume and whole-cell deformability while reaching a measurement rate up to 5000 cells per second. Additionally, the relative position of the nucleus inside the cell is reflected by the asymmetry of the measured curve. This particular finding is confirmed by our numerical simulation model and emphasized by a modified cytoskeleton HL-60 cells model. Furthermore, the proposed device discriminated HL-60 derived myeloid cells such as neutrophils, basophils and promyelocytes, which are indistinguishable using flow cytometry. To our knowledge, this is the first integrated device to simultaneously characterize the cellular refractive index and whole-cell deformability, yielding enhanced discrimination of large myeloid cell populations.

Radiation-Pressure-Antidamping Enhanced Optomechanical Spring Sensing

On-chip refractive index sensing plays an important role in many fields, ranging from chemical, biomedical, and medical to environmental applications. Recently, optomechanical cavities have emerged...

The investigation of an LSPR refractive index sensor based on periodic gold nanorings array

An on-chip refractive index (RI) sensor, which is based on the localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) of periodic gold nanorings array, is presented. The structure parameters and performance of LSPR-based sensors are optimized by analyzing and comparing the LSPR extinction spectra. The mechanism of the enhancement of plasma resonance in a ring array is discussed by the simulation results. A feasible preparation scheme of the nanorings array is proposed and verified by coating a gold film and etching on the photonic crystals. Based on the optimum sensing structure, an RI sensor is constructed with a RI sensitivity of 577 nm/refractive index unit (RIU) and a figure of merit (FOM) of 6.1, which is approximately 2 times that of previous reports.

Resonant photonic-crystal structures with a diffraction grating for refractive index sensing

A new planar configuration of an optical refractive index sensor based on the excitation of Bloch surface waves and containing a diffraction grating and a photonic crystal is proposed and numerically investigated. The structure under analysis is compared with the conventional sensor based on the Kretschmann configuration for two varying parameters: the angle and wavelength of incident light. The results of the study may find application in the design of novel on-chip refractive index sensors and spectral filters.

An ultrahigh-contrast and broadband on-chip refractive index sensor based on a surface-plasmon-polariton interferometer.

Using a double-slit structure fabricated on a gold film or a subwavelength (300 nm) plasmonic waveguide, high-contrast and broadband plasmonic sensors based on the interference of surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) are experimentally demonstrated on chips. By adjusting the focused spot position of the p-polarized incident light on the double-slit structure to compensate for the propagation loss of the SPPs, the interfering SPPs from the two slits have nearly equal intensities. As a result, nearly completely destructive interference can be experimentally achieved in a broad bandwidth (>200 nm), revealing the robust design and fabrication of the double-slit structure. More importantly, a high sensing figure of merit (FOM*) of >1 × 10(4) RIU(-1) (refractive index unit), which is much greater than the previous experimental results, is obtained at the destructive wavelength because of a high contrast ratio (C = 0.96). The high-contrast and broadband on-chip sensor fabricated on the subwavelength plasmonic waveguide may find important applications in the real-time sensing of particles and molecules.

Engineering of parallel plasmonic-photonic interactions for on-chip refractive index sensors.

Ultra-narrow linewidth in the extinction spectrum of noble metal nanoparticle arrays induced by the lattice plasmon resonances (LPRs) is of great significance for applications in plasmonic lasers and plasmonic sensors. However, the challenge of sustaining LPRs in an asymmetric environment greatly restricts their practical applications, especially for high-performance on-chip plasmonic sensors. Herein, we fully study the parallel plasmonic-photonic interactions in both the Au nanodisk arrays (NDAs) and the core/shell SiO2/Au nanocylinder arrays (NCAs). Different from the dipolar interactions in the conventionally studied orthogonal coupling, the horizontal propagating electric field introduces the out-of-plane "hot spots" and results in electric field delocalization. Through controlling the aspect ratio to manipulate the "hot spot" distributions of the localized surface plasmon resonances (LSPRs) in the NCAs, we demonstrate a high-performance refractive index sensor with a wide dynamic range of refractive indexes ranging from 1.0 to 1.5. Both high figure of merit (FOM) and high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) can be maintained under these detectable refractive indices. Furthermore, the electromagnetic field distributions confirm that the high FOM in the wide dynamic range is attributed to the parallel coupling between the superstrate diffraction orders and the height-induced LSPR modes. Our study on the near-field "hot-spot" engineering and far-field parallel coupling paves the way towards improved understanding of the parallel LPRs and the design of high-performance on-chip refractive index sensors.

Noninvasive picoliter volume thermometry based on backscatter interferometry.

Using the on-chip refractive index (RI) detector based on backscatter interferometry, sensitive, small volume, noninvasive thermometry can be performed. The current optical configuration for the on-chip interferometric backscatter detector (OCIBD) is quite simple and consists of an unfocused laser, an unaltered chip with a hemispherical channel and a photodetector. Alignment is straightforward with the only requirement being that the beam fully fills the channel. The interaction of an unfocused laser beam with the uncoated etched channel with a curvature within the silica plate (chip) produces fringes whose positional changes scale with respect to the refractive index (RI), n, of the fluid in the channel. Due to the inherently high value of dn/dT for most fluids and the high sensitivity of OCIBD to RI changes, the measurement of small temperature variations in sub-nanoliter volumes is possible. Performing OCIBD with a 75 microm diameter laser beam on a silica chip that contains an etched channel with a 40 microm radius facilitates noninvasive thermometry on a N-(2-hydroxyethyl)piperazine-(2-ethanesulfonic acid) (HEPES) solution in a 188 x 10(-12) L probe volume with a temperature resolution of 9.9 x 10(-4) degrees C, at the 99% confidence level.

Chip-based refractive index detection using a single point evanescent wave probe

This paper presents a novel approach for performing spectroscopic refractive index detection within microfluidic channel environments. Based on the principle of total internal reflection (TIR), changes in the refractive index of an analyte stream passing through a microfabricated channel are detected through interaction with an optical evanescent field formed at the channel wall. Refractive index variations within the microchannel environment modify the critical angle at the liquid–solid interface, thereby altering the characteristics of evanescent field formation in solution. These variations are evidenced through measurement of fluorescence intensities. Initially, the design and testing of the method are described. Subsequently, refractive index values for bulk sucrose solutions (0–35% w/v sucrose in water) are measured using the single point evanescent wave probe and compared with values obtained through conventional refractometry and the literature. Close agreement between all three approaches is demonstrated. The method is then applied to the detection of sucrose plugs (10–500 mM) hydrodynamically flowing through microfabricated channels on a planar glass chip. The evanescent wave probe is also used to selectively monitor specific analytes within a multicomponent system, by precise angular control in the vicinity of the critical angle. Although detection limits using the prototype system are non-ideal (∼5 µM carbohydrate), they compare favourably with existing methods for on-chip refractive index detection.