Optical temperature sensing based on the Goos-Hanchen effect

The possibility of constructing an optical sensor for temperature monitoring based on the Goos-Hanchen (GH) effect is explored using a theoretical model. This model considers the lateral shift of the incident beam upon reflection from a metal-dielectric interface, with the shift becoming a function of temperature due mainly to the temperature dependence of the optical properties of the metal. It is found that such a sensor can be most effective by using long wavelength p-polarized incident light at almost grazing incidence onto the metal, where significant variation of negative GH shifts can be observed as a function of the temperature. (C) 2007 Optical Society of America.