Simulation of surface plasmon resonance sensor based on D-shaped photonic crystal fiber

• Main Author: Chen, Boming
• Other Authors: Shum Ping
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2016
• Subjects: DRNTU::Engineering::Electrical and electronic engineering::Optics, optoelectronics, photonics
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/68355
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensor based on D-shaped photonic crystal fiber (PCF) is one of the most promising sensor technique characterized by its high sensitivity. The working wavelength range of most of the SPR sensors locates in the visible region near the plasma frequency of traditional metal materials such as gold and silver. It is known that fiber-based components have already been well- developed in the fiber optical communication band (~1550 nm). To improve the performance of SPR sensor in this band, we proposed a new SPR sensor based on D-shaped photonic crystal fiber (PCF). The design of the fiber involves a side- polished PCF with thin layer of indium tin oxide (ITO) deposited on the polished surface. By changing the doping concentration of the ITO material, the ITO layer’s plasma frequency can be tuned within in a large wavelength range from visible to middle infrared. Therefore, by properly preparation, ITO can be a promising material for SPR application at optical communication band near 1550 nm. Design factors which influence the phase matching, such as thickness of the ITO layer and diameter of the polarized side rods, are inspected to evaluate their impacts. Numerical simulation results suggest that with optimized design, the predicted wavelength sensitivity of the SPR sensor will be over 6,000 nm/refractive index unit (RIU) with amplitude sensitivity of 10.46x10E6 dB/m/RIU unit for an liquid analyte.