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Optical Guided-wave Chemical and Biosensors II pp 109–149Cite as

Fiber-Optic Chemical and Biosensors

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Part of the book series: Springer Series on Chemical Sensors and Biosensors ((SSSENSORS,volume 8))

Abstract

In the past 15 years, the fiber-optic communication industry has literally revolutionized the telecommunication industry by providing higher performance and more reliable telecommunication links. In parallel to these developments, and due to the high volume production of fiber-optic components at reasonable performance and costs, other industries associated with fiber optics have been developed like the sensors industry. As component prices have fallen and quality improvements have been made, the ability of fiber-optic sensors to displace conventional sensors have become a reality. A major category in fiber-optic sensors is the chemical and biosensors. These sensors can provide numerous advantages over conventional sensors. These advantages are higher performance, light weight, small and compact size, immunity to electromagnetic interference, remote sensing, ability to be multiplexed, and ability to be embedded into various structures and materials. The sensor’s sensitivity and selectivity are enhanced by using optical transducers capable of precise detection of surround changes.

This chapter is prepared as an overview on fiber-optic chemical and biosensors. Because of the importance of intrinsic sensors with modified cladding structure, more attention is paid to this type of sensors. The introduction section is focused on some basics for fiber-optic sensors. The introduction is followed by a section on fiber-optic transducers and the transduction mechanisms, mainly absorption, fluorescence, Raman effect, and surface Plasmon effect. In Sect. 3, design guidelines for both extrinsic- and intrinsic-type sensors are presented. Because of the advantages of intrinsic-type sensors, a number of examples are presented and discussed. Sections 4 and 5 are on sensor development, processing, characterization, and optimization, focusing more on the modified cladding type. The manufacturing process is explained in detail and supported by examples on novel applications.

One of the key components in sensor design is the detection technique used for monitoring the sensor output. In addition to the known detection techniques for monitoring of the light intensity, phase, wavelength and others, a new technique, which has recently been developed, based on monitoring the modal power distribution (MPD) and redistribution is presented in Sect. 6. It is based on recording the spatial (2D) intensity modulation (SIM), within the core of multimode fibers. The fundamentals and basic theories are presented as well as the methodology for sensors output measurements. At the end of Sect. 6, an example is presented on the development and successful application of the SIM technique for ammonia detection, which shows significant improvement in the sensor sensitivity in comparison to traditional intensity measurements.

To this end, this chapter is prepared to provide the academic knowledge base for senior and graduate students in the field of chemical and biosensors. Also, it is prepared for industrially qualified researchers for understanding the technology base in this field.

The online version of the Erratum chapter can be found at 10.1007/978-3-642-02827-4_12

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Abbreviations

MPD:

Modal power distribution

SIM:

Spatial intensity modulation

2D:

Two-dimensional

SM:

Single mode

MM:

Multimode

NA:

Numerical aperture

CoCl2 :

Cobalt di-chloride

He–Ne:

Helium neon

HCl:

Hydrochloric acide

NH3 :

Ammonia

H4N2 :

Hydrazine

H2O2 :

Hydrogen peroxide

DMMP:

Dimethyl–methyl phoshopnate

NDSA:

Naphthalene-di sulphonic acid

ASQA:

Anthraquinone di sulphonic acid

HF:

Hydrofluoric acid

LED:

Light-emitting diode

α:

Attenuation coefficient

I o :

Input optical power

I :

Output optical power

L :

Fiber length

n :

Refractive index (n core, n co, n clad, n mcl, n cl, n complex, and n real)

θ:

Acceptance angle

A:

Absorbance

I 0 :

Light intensities transmitted in the absence of the analyte

I :

Light intensities transmitted in the presence of the analyte

ε:

Absorption coefficient

l :

Optical path length

c :

Concentration of the absorbing substance

I em :

Fluorescence intensity in the presence of quencher

I ex :

Intensity of excitation

ζ :

Quantum efficiency of fluorescence

ε :

Extension coefficient

k :

Constant

c :

Concentration of the fluorophore

Q:

Quencher concentration

k :

Stern-Volmer constant

I 0 :

Fluorescence intensity in the absence of the quencher

I :

Fluorescence intensity in the presence of quencher

k:

Imaginary component of the index related to the materials absorbance

R:

Sensor response

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Photonics Laboratories, Inc., 1117 Hillcrest Rd, Narberth, PA, 19072, USA

    Mahmoud El-Sherif

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  1. Mahmoud El-Sherif
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Correspondence to Mahmoud El-Sherif .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. GDG Environnement Ltée, 430, rue St-Laurent, Trois-Rivières, Quebec, G8T 6H3, Canada

    Mohammed Zourob

  2. INRS Énergie, Matériaux et Télécommunications, 1650, boul. Lionel-Boulet, Varennes, Québec, J3X 1S2, Canada

    Mohammed Zourob

  3. Dept. Engineering Science & Mechanics, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, SA, 16802, USA

    Akhlesh Lakhtakia

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El-Sherif, M. (2010). Fiber-Optic Chemical and Biosensors. In: Zourob, M., Lakhtakia, A. (eds) Optical Guided-wave Chemical and Biosensors II. Springer Series on Chemical Sensors and Biosensors, vol 8. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-02827-4_5

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