Study of the integration of waveguides with optical absorbing materials for application as a refractive index sensor

• Grant number: 21/11491-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: January 01, 2022
• End date: December 31, 2023
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Electrical Engineering
• Principal Investigator: Luis Alberto Mijam Barea
• Grantee: Otavio de Paiva Pinheiro Neto
• Host Institution: Centro de Ciências Exatas e de Tecnologia (CCET). Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR). São Carlos , SP, Brazil

Abstract

This research project proposes to study Integrated optic sensors exclusively based on waveguides. The study is initially going to be focused on creating structural modifications in the waveguides in such a way that these modifications may grant that the evanescent wave of guided-modes interacts efficiently with the target analyte, causing propagation loss and modulating the out-guide power accordingly to the variation of de anality refractive index. This interaction with the analyte should happen in the detection window, opened only over a part of the sensor. This idea should already grant a reduction of complexity and of exigence of the high resolution of the equipment used with the optic sensors, which are required for monitoring and often used in sensors based on measures of resonant wavelength variation. Next, absorber materials will be sought for, strategically positioned on the designed waveguides, which should guarantee a variation in the interaction of the evanescent propagating wave also with the absorbing material, depending on the variation of the refractive index of the analyte. This variation in the interaction between the evanescent wave and the absorbing material should enhance the variations on the out-guide power, allowing to monitor more easily the changes on the refractive index. Finally, will be investigated the available fabrication processes to obtain these designed optic sensors, presenting at the end of the project a fabrication script and the virtual lithographic masks. The success in this work should guarantee sensors with high sensibility and less complexity of required monitoring instruments, bringing an innovative character for these devices and opening a group of new applications that involve the interaction of propagating evanescent wave, absorbers materials, and different target analyte.(AU)