Frequency selective surfaces for high sensitivity terahertz sensing

An apporach for the sensing of small amounts of chemical and biochemical material is presented. A frequency selective surface made from asymmetric split ring resonators is excited with free space radiation. Due to interference effects a resonance occurs with a steep flank in the frequency response which is shifted upon dielectric loading. Utilizing a strong E-field concentration by selective loading the detection of very small amounts of probe material becomes possible. The functionality is proven by numerical simulation and the optimization of structure and loading is performed. (C) 2007 American Institute of Physics.