Measuring physical parameters with surface plasmon resonance heterodyne interferometry

If the incident angle of a light beam on the boundary surface between the thin metal film of a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) apparatus and a test medium is equal to or very near the resonant angle, then the phase difference between the p- and s-polarizations of the reflected light is related to the associated physical parameter. The phase difference can be measured accurately with heterodyne interferometry. If the relationship between the phase difference and the associated physical parameter is specified, then the associated physical parameter can be estimated from the phase difference data. This method has the benefits of both common-path interferometry and heterodyne interferometry, such as simple structure, high stability, high resolution, easy operation, and rapid real-time measurement.     

表面等离子共振效应中传统近似理论与薄膜光学理论

指出Kretschmann模型的传统表面等离子共振公式在求解金属薄膜的参量时存在近似性,采用更为严密的薄膜光学理论,通过薄膜膜系的特征矩阵,得出表面等离子体共振衰减曲线.结果表明,表面等离子体共振近似理论与薄膜光学理论得到的共振角及反射率幅度存在差别;采用等高线图,给出了共振角差随着金属介电常量的变化规律.进一步的实验表明,薄膜光学理论所得模拟结果较表面等离子体共振近似理论与实验值吻合地更好,证明薄膜光学理论应用在表面等离子体共振效应要优于常用的近似理论.最后,采用两种理论对表面等离子体共振传感器进行优化设计,结果表明,两种理论所获得的高灵敏度分布区域差异较大,必须采用薄膜光学理论提供更精确的薄膜参量,来优化设计高灵敏度表面等离子体共振传感器.     

Optical method to differentiate tequilas based on angular modulation surface plasmon resonance

We report the use of the prism-based surface plasmon resonance (SPR) technique to differentiate between three types of tequilas white or silver, aged, and extra-aged. We used the angular interrogation method in which the structure is based on prism fabricated with BK7 glass coated with a gold layer as the SPR active layer. Our study was centered in the analysis of the resonant angle of the SPR generated by the three types of tequilas produced by the three major tequila-producing firms. We observed that each tequila sample produced a well-differentiated SPR curve. We found that resonant angle of the SPR curve produced by silver tequilas is larger than that produced by the aged and extra-aged tequilas of the same producer firm. We found that the position of the SPR curve is not exclusively determined by the alcohol contents; we believe that there are other parameters derived from the aging process that should be considered. The refractive index of the tequilas used in this study was estimated using the measured resonant angle.     

Simultaneous excitation of cavity resonance and surface plasmon resonance in Ag/Al<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>3</Subscript>/Ag layer structure

Simultaneous excitation of cavity resonance (CR) and surface plasmon resonance (SPR) was observed in the angular spectrum by substituting Ag/Al₂O₃/Ag layers for the metal film in a Kretschmann structure. Two reflective valleys, elicited respectively by CR and SPR, appeared at different positions in the angular spectrum. The former is the sum of enhanced transmission of CR and absorption of the metal, expressed in the reflection spectrum and extremely insensitive to the changes of the surface environment (refractive index). The latter behavior is like that when two metal films are stuck together: it has almost the same resonance depth and width, and is extremely sensitive to the changes of the surface environment. Moreover, two SPR peaks could be excited simultaneously at one angle but with different wavelengths in the frequency spectrum, which is not seen in traditional Kretschmann structures.     

Investigation of the sensitivity of H-shaped nano-grating surface plasmon resonance biosensors using rigorous coupled wave analysis

The sensitivity of an angle-resolved surface plasmon resonance biosensor is not only determined by the shift of the resonance angle, but also the width of the SPR curves and reflective amplitude. The three factors should be considered simultaneously in designing a SPR biosensor. In this study, a H-shaped nano-grating-based SPR biosensor is proposed and the influence of different structural parameters on the performance is investigated by using rigorous coupled wave analysis (RCWA). Electric field distribution around the nano-grating are also given out to directly explain the performance difference for various structural parameters. Larger resonance angle shift, reflectance amplitude and sharper SPR curves’ width are obtained simultaneously under optimized structural parameters. Our study is usefully for understanding of the enhancement mechanism of the nano-grating SPR biosensor and also provides instructions for fabricating highly sensitive SPR biosensors. PACS 42.79.Dj; 42.81.Gs; 73.20.Mf; 07.07.Df     

一种基于相位测量的角漂移自适应结构表面等离子体共振气体折射率测量系统

提出了一种可抑制角漂移的表面等离子体传感器结构,并结合相位测量设计了相应的气体折射率测量系统。分析表明激光入射角、金膜厚度以及反射光p、s分量的相位差与气体折射率之间的固有非线性是影响相位响应度与折射率测量精度的主要因素。计算表明所提出的自适应结构将角漂移引起的误差降低了一个数量级并很大程度提高了测量灵敏度。同时分析设计了金膜厚度参数,并评估了反射光p、s分量的相位差与气体折射率之间固有非线性带来的误差。应用于空气折射率的测量比对实验显示其测量精度达到了10-6量级。     

Measurement of air refractive index based on surface plasmon resonance and phase detection

A method for refractive index of air measurement is presented based on surface plasmon resonance (SPR) and phase detection using a dual-frequency laser interferometer. Theoretical analyses indicate that the phase-difference variation of the measurement signal versus the reference signal is linear with refractive index of air (RIA) fluctuation, and the calculation formula of RIA is derived. The structure design of the self-adaptive SPR sensor greatly reduces the measurement error resulting from the incident angle shift and improves the sensitivity. The experiments show that measurement uncertainty of 10(-6) order has been achieved when phase detection precision is 0.1°. The phenomenon of sudden phase variation during air pumping and air filling, which is caused by temperature fluctuation, is discussed.     

用扫描近场光学显微镜技术研究金膜表面等离体子共振

表面等离体子波(SPW)可与入射光横磁波极化能量耦合并被共振激发,这种现象被称为表面等离体子共振现象(SPR)。主要利用扫描近场光学显微镜(SNOM)技术和表面等离体子共振现象技术相结合,来研究金膜表面等离体子共振。设计并建立了结构独特的新型Kretschmann型表面等离体子共振现象耦合装置,同时又设计了具有厚度梯度的表面等离体子的制备方法。在此基础上,测量了改变入射角条件下的表面等离体子共振曲线,测得该装置的等离体子共振角灵敏度为1°。并且对金膜表面进行表面等离体子共振条件下的扫描近场光学显微成像。实验结果表明,在共振时金膜表面的扫描成像比不共振时清晰,而且增加了很多细节。应用表面等离体子共振现象技术将可以明显提高扫描近场光学显微镜的信噪比、分辨力等性能。     

Surface plasmon resonance detection using amorphous carbon/Au multilayer structure

Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) can be used to detect the change in reflective index on a metal surface. In this report, we propose detection of the SPR can easily be applied to estimate the thickness of the amorphous carbon (a-C:H) films. To detect changes in film thickness using SPR, devices with an a-C:H/Au structure were fabricated. The a-C:H films were deposited by electron cyclotron resonance plasma chemical vapor deposition (ECR-CVD) and sputtering, and the obtained film densities were 1.4 and 1.6 g/cm³, respectively. By the deposition of an 11-nm thick a-C:H film on a Au layer by sputtering, the SPR angle changed from 44.90° to 47.05°. For a-C:H deposited by ECR-CVD, the SPR angle was shifted from 44.24° for Au without the a-C:H layer to 58.44° after deposition of 45 nm thick a-C:H film. In both systems of the SPR angle increased with increasing the film thickness. The rate at which the SPR angle shifted depended on the a-C:H film density. These results show that the thickness of an a-C:H film can be determined by the SPR angle shift on an a-C:H layer using a-C:H/Au device with an a-C:H film of the same density.     

A Study of High and Low Angle Boundaries in Ti3Al

High and low angle boundaries have been examined in Ti₃Al using atransmission electron microscope. The misorientations between thegrains were measured accurately and dislocation arrays were imagedwithin these boundaries. An analysis of the low angle boundarydemonstrates that its structure consists of an array of dislocationswith Burgers vectors equal to crystal translation vectors. This arrayaccommodates the angular deviation from the perfect crystallinestructure. The high angle boundary imaged in this specimen alsodisplayed dislocation contrast and the misorientation between thegrains was measured. However, reference structures accommodating thecorresponding deviation could not be unambiguously identified in theobserved dislocation array. The problems of relating the dislocationstructure in hexagonal materials to misorientation relationships arediscussed.     

Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) reflectance imaging: Far-field recognition of near-field phenomena

The surface plasmon resonance (SPR) reflectance imaging technique provides a label-free visualization tool to characterize the near-field fluidic transport properties within 100 nm from the solid surface. The key idea is that the SPR reflectance intensity varies with the near-field refractive index (RI) of the test fluid, which in turn depends on the micro- and nano-fluidic scalar properties such as concentrations, temperatures, and phase changes, occurring in the near-field. As essential knowledge to understand and implement the SPR reflectance imaging technique, this paper presents discussions on the basics of surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs), surface plasmon resonance (SPR), setup of the SPR reflectance imaging system, and the SPR reflectance imaging resolution. The second part of the paper elaborates the applications of the SPR imaging sensor technique in characterizing the near-field fingerprints of nanofluidic evaporative self-assembly.     

Highly sensitive differential phase-sensitive surface plasmon resonance biosensor based on the Mach-Zehnder configuration

A high-sensitivity surface plasmon resonance (SPR) biosensor based on the Mach-Zehnder interferometer design is presented. The novel feature of the new design is the use of a Wollaston prism through which the phase quantities of the p and s polarizations are interrogated simultaneously. Since SPR affects only the p polarization, the signal due to the s polarization can be used as the reference. Consequently, the differential phase between the two polarizations allows us to eliminate all common-path phase noise while keeping the phase change caused by the SPR effect. Experimental results obtained from glycerin-water mixtures indicate that the sensitivity limit of our scheme is 5.5 x 10(-8) refractive-index units per 0.01 degrees phase change. To our knowledge, this is a significant improvement over previously obtained results when gold was used as the sensor surface. Such an improvement in the sensitivity limit should allow SPR biosensors to become a possible replacement for conventional biosensing techniques based on fluorescence. Monitoring of the bovine serum albumin (BSA) binding reaction with BSA antibodies is also demonstrated.     

Investigation of the binary model of scattering of 1 keV to 25 eV Ar+ ions from a Cu surface 1

The validity of the binary collision approximation for describing the scattering of low energy Ar ions from a polycrystalline Cu surface was investigated. The Ar ions were incident upon the target surface at an angle of 45° (with respect of the plane of the surface). The range of primary ion energy studied was 1000–25 eV. An ultra-high vacuum magnetic sector mass spectrometer was used to analyze those secondary ions emitted from the specimen surface at an angle of 90° with respect to the primary ion beam. The scattered ions were identified and their energies measured. No significant deviation from the prediction of the binary collision model was found throughout the range of energy studied.     

Self-assembled silver nanoparticles: correlation between structural and surface plasmon resonance properties

We report a facile method for controllable fabrication of high-density silver nanoparticle films with a widely adjustable surface plasmon resonance (SPR) frequency, based on the gas phase cluster beam deposition. On the one hand, we can control the particle size by depositing clusters on silica substrate. Light extinction spectra of the self-assembled Ag nanoparticles with various particle sizes are characterized and show two SPRs, in which a SPR exhibits a redshift from less 400 nm to more than 570 nm with an increase in the particle size, whereas the other shows a slight position shifting. On the other hand, the inter-particle distance of the self-assembled Ag nanoparticles can also be controlled by depositing clusters on silica glass coated with Formvar film, and the SPR wavelength shows a redshift from <400 nm to more than 560 nm, which can be attributed to the increase of the fraction of closely spaced nanoparticle pairs that are near-field coupled with the deposition mass. The size and coverage-dependent SPR properties are also compared with the results from the discrete dipole approximation calculations. The present method of tailoring metallic microstructures could find important applications in plasmonics.     

Non-contact method for measuring solution concentration using surface plasmon resonance apparatus and heterodyne interferometry

A simple non-contact method is proposed for measuring the concentration of solutions. Using the significant phase difference between p- and s-polarizations of the reflected light of a surface plasmon resonance apparatus, the variation in the phase difference, which is caused by a variation in the concentration of a test solution, can be accurately measured by common path heterodyne interferometry. Then, by substituting the corresponding variation in the incident angle of light at the base of the SPR prism in a specially derived equation, the concentration of the test solution can be determined. The validity of this method was demonstrated experimentally. This method is characterized by the advantages of the device having a simple non-contact structure; it being easy to operate; and its high accuracy, stability, and resolution.     

Investigation of dual-channel fiber-optic surface plasmon resonance sensing for biological applications

A dual-channel fiber-optic sensor based on surface plasmon resonance (SPR) for self-referencing refractive-index measurements has been proposed. Most applications of fiber-optic SPR sensors are designed to measure the refractive index of a liquid or gas sample by measuring the signal from a single surface, the sensitivity and stability of which is easily affected by the fluctuation of external environmental conditions. We have designed a dual-channel fiber-optic surface sensor with two independent SPR signals from two areas of the same probe. A prototype sensor was fabricated and characterized. The preliminary experimental results demonstrate the characteristic responses of both SPR signals from two channels that independently correspond to the refractive index changes in the liquid samples with which they are in contact. The design could be extended to a multichannel sensor with further developments. The experimental results confirmed that one channel can be used as a reference sensor that could compensate for unexpected changes in bulk refraction or temperature and develop this sensor as a practicable high-sensitivity biosensing device.     

Magnetized SPR sensor for enhanced functionality

It is known that a magnetic field changes the RI and the SPR angle of specific analytes. We have applied an external magnetic field to a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensor to exploit this phenomenon. A gold film is used for excitation of SPR in the sensor with a Kretschmann configuration. According to the concentration of 4-type analyte, we observed unique changes of the SPR angle due to the magnetic field, providing better classification of material type than a conventional SPR sensor.     

近场显微干涉成像中的探测角度和偏振问题研究

用偶极子耦合系统来模拟近场干涉测量中的探针样品关系,并利用各电场分量之间的组合方程组精确计算出其可能探测到的强度和相位像。结果显示,近场干涉所测量到的近场像的分辨力和探测器的方位及参考光的偏振方向之间有较强的依赖关系,随着探测器位置不同或者参考光偏振方向的变化,同一样品在同一照明条件下所得到的图像也会发生明显的改变。在倏逝波照明的情况下,近场像的精确度随着探测器相对于样品视角的增大而改善,且在不同偏振方向的近场像中,只有偏振方向垂直于样品表面的像能真实反映样品的细节分布,且同时具有足够的强度分布。     

基于表面等离子体共振的水质分析系统稳定性研究

根据表面等离子体共振的原理,建立了可用于长期、实时、不间断检测的水质分析系统.为了提高系统的稳定性,对表面等离子体共振传感芯片进行了改进,利用LB法在传感芯片的金属膜表面镀制了聚苯乙烯（PS）层.利用改进前后的表面等离子体共振传感芯片分别对两种样品进行了稳定性实验研究.分析经过长时间检测前后所测得的实验数据,发现改进后的水质分析系统所测得的溶液表面等离子体共振共振角的变化为改进前系统的1/10,最小反射率改变为改进前的1/30.实验证明,经过改进的水质分析系统能更适用于长期不间断的检测分析.     

Focused cylindrical vector beam assisted microscopic pSPR biosensor with an ultra wide dynamic range

A novel phase-sensitive surface plasmon resonance (pSPR) biosensor based on differential phase measurement between two cylindrical vector beams, namely radially polarized and azmuthally polarized beams, is proposed and studied in an inverted microscope. Different from a fixed angle or a relatively small angular range for SPR excitation in the attenuated total reflection (ATR) configuration, the signal beam focused by a total internal reflection fluorescence microscopic objective contains the entire angular range from 0 to the maximum angle given by the numerical aperture, leading to a dynamic range of 0.41 RIU which is over seven times wider than the best result of the ATR pSPR sensor. Moreover, with the technique of differential phase measurement between radial and azimuthal polarizations employed in our configuration, high sensitivity of ±9.05×10(-8) refractive index unit/1 deg can simultaneously be achieved in principle. The proposed technique maintains the unique advantages in terms of securing high imaging resolution and sensitivity with an ultra-wide dynamic range simultaneously.