A portable optical fiber SPR temperature sensor based on a smart-phone

Area of Science:

• Optoelectronics
• Nanotechnology
• Sensor Technology

Background:

• Traditional temperature sensing methods can be expensive and lack portability.
• Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) offers high sensitivity for detecting refractive index changes, crucial for sensing applications.
• Integrating advanced sensing technologies with ubiquitous platforms like smartphones enhances accessibility and data processing.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose and demonstrate a novel fiber-optic temperature sensing system.
• To integrate a Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) sensor with a smartphone platform for real-time temperature monitoring.
• To evaluate the performance and potential applications of this integrated sensing system.

Main Methods:

• A side-polished fiber-based SPR sensor was designed and fabricated.
• The SPR sensor was illuminated using a smartphone's LED flash.
• Output signals were captured and processed using the smartphone's camera and a custom-developed application.
• The sensor's performance was tested in distilled water across a temperature range of 30-70°C.

Main Results:

• The fiber-optic SPR temperature sensing system was successfully demonstrated.
• The system achieved a measurement resolution of 0.83°C within the tested temperature range.
• A high linear correlation coefficient of 0.9798 was obtained, indicating reliable performance.
• The smartphone integration enabled portable and efficient data acquisition and processing.

Conclusions:

• A low-cost, portable fiber-optic SPR temperature sensor integrated with a smartphone has been developed.
• The system exhibits promising performance for accurate temperature measurements.
• This technology holds significant potential for widespread applications in healthcare and environmental monitoring due to its accessibility and cost-effectiveness.