High-Q Plasmonic Resonator for Volatile Organic Compound Detection

Abstract

A hybrid plasmonic waveguide (HPWG)-based resonator designs are studied for on-chip detection of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The HPWG, which combines dielectric and metallic layers, significantly enhances the confinement of electromagnetic field, leading to increased interaction between the guided light and the surrounding analytes. The system achieves high spectral sensitivity and narrow linewidth by integrating multiple microring resonators in a cascaded configuration. This is critical for distinguishing small changes in the refractive index (RI) associated with different VOCs. Finite element method (FEM) simulations demonstrate the superior sensing performance of a proposed device, showing a spectral sensitivity of 469.5 nm/RIU and a quality factor (QF) of 518.75. The compact design and high sensitivity make this sensor an excellent candidate for on-chip VOC monitoring in industrial safety, as well as portable breath sensors to detect VOC biomarkers for early disease diagnosis. © IEEE. 1973-2012 IEEE.