Refractive index sensor with high sensitivity based on circular photonic crystal.

Area of Science:

• Photonics
• Nanotechnology
• Sensor Technology

Background:

• Refractive index sensors are crucial for detecting analytes.
• Circular photonic crystals (CPCs) offer unique optical properties.
• Integrating CPCs with silicon structures presents opportunities for enhanced sensing.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose and investigate a highly sensitive refractive index sensor.
• To explore the relationship between sensor design parameters and performance.
• To demonstrate the sensor's capability with various analytes.

Main Methods:

• Designing a silicon ring sensor around a CPC cavity.
• Analyzing transmission spectra to determine the CPC bandgap.
• Simulating and optimizing sensor structure parameters.
• Evaluating sensor performance with different analytes.

Main Results:

• Achieved a high sensitivity of 1054 nm/RIU.
• Obtained a quality factor of 18,206.
• Established clear relationships between structural and performance parameters.
• Demonstrated effective sensing with diverse analytes.

Conclusions:

• The proposed silicon ring CPC sensor exhibits excellent sensitivity and quality factor.
• The findings facilitate the development of advanced CPC-based sensing platforms.
• This work paves the way for practical applications of photonic crystal sensors.