Surface plasmon resonance biosensor using inverted graded index optical fiber

A new type of surface plasmon resonance biosensor based on inverted graded index optical fiber is presented. To allow the exciting of the surface plasmons, the cladding is removed and a thin film of gold is coated on the inverted graded index core at this region. This sensor can measure the refractive index (RI) of biomaterials in the range of 1.36-1.48. The simulation results show that the proposed biosensor has a maximum sensitivity of about 7000 nm/RI unit (RIU) and the average figure of merit is 48 RIU-1. The simplicity of the design and its high sensitivity make it a good candidate for low-cost RI sensors suitable for biomaterials.

Automated summary

The new surface plasmon resonance biosensor based on inverted graded index optical fiber has a maximum sensitivity of about 7000 nm/RI unit (RIU) and an average figure of merit of 48 RIU-1. The design simplicity and high sensitivity make it a good candidate for low-cost RI sensors suitable for biomaterials.