Ultra-sensitive chemical vapor detection using micro-cavity photothermal spectroscopy

In this paper, I systematically investigated Micro-Cavity PhotoThermal Spectroscopy (MC-PTS), a novel technique for ultra-sensitive detection of chemical molecular species. I first derive the photothermal enhancement factor and noise characteristics of the technique using a generic theoretical model, followed by numerical analysis of a design example using chalcogenide glass micro-disk cavities. Guidelines for sensor material selection and device design are formulated based on the theoretical insight. The numerical analysis shows that this technique features a record photothermal enhancement factor of 104 with respect to conventional cavity-enhanced (multi-pass) infrared absorption spectroscopy, and is capable of detecting non-preconcentrated chemical vapor molecules down to the ppt level with a moderate cavity quality factor of 105 and a pump laser power of 0.1 W. Such performance qualifies this technique as one of the most sensitive methods for chemical vapor spectroscopic analysis. (C) 2010 Optical Society of America