[Review on label-free optical bio-sensing technology based on whisper-gallery-mode]

Optical biosensors are becoming an important tool for drug research and life science, and the label-free optical biosensor based on whisper-gallery-mode (WGM) is reviewed in the present paper. The WGM-based sensors are categorized into three types according to the microcavity structure. The biosensor using microsphere got extensive research because of high quality factor, and its response to protein, virus, and bacteria had been studied. The models based on single photon resonant state and perturbation theory were established. The biosensor using microdisk was proposed early since it can make use of mature lithography technology; however, the quality factor was increased greatly only after the thermal reflow process was introduced and single molecule measurement was then realized. The biosensor using microring has simpler mode structure and materials such as polymer, silicon nitride and silicon-on-insulator had been used for sensor fabrication. As a 3-dimension expansion, sensor using microtube can combine the optical channel and fluidic channel, which attracting more and more attention.