Open Access
D-shape optical fiber refractometer based on TM and TE lossy mode resonances
(SPIE, 2014) Zubiate Orzanco, Pablo; Ruiz Zamarreño, Carlos; Del Villar, Ignacio; Matías Maestro, Ignacio; Arregui San Martín, Francisco Javier; Ingeniería Eléctrica, Electrónica y de Comunicación; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa, Elektronikoa eta Telekomunikazio Ingeniaritza
The fabrication and characterization of an optical fiber refractometer based on Lossy Mode Resonances (LMR) is presented. TiO2/ poly (sodium 4-styrenesulfonate) coatings deposited on side-polished D-shaped optical fibers are used as LMR supporting coatings. LMRs are sensitive to the external medium refractive index and D-shaped optical fibers enable the observation of TE and TM LMR polarizations. These refractometers based on TE and TM LMR showed an average sensitivity of 2737 nm/RIU and 2893 nm/RIU respectively for a surrounding medium refractive index (SMRI) range from 1.35 to 1.41.
Open Access
High sensitive and selective C-reactive protein detection by means of lossy mode resonance based optical fiber devices
(Elsevier, 2017) Zubiate Orzanco, Pablo; Ruiz Zamarreño, Carlos; Sánchez Zábal, Pedro; Matías Maestro, Ignacio; Arregui San Martín, Francisco Javier; Institute of Smart Cities - ISC; Ingeniería Eléctrica y Electrónica; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa eta Elektronikoa; Universidad Pública de Navarra / Nafarroako Unibertsitate Publikoa
This work presents the development of high sensitive, selective, fast and reusable C-reactive protein (CRP) aptasensors. This novel approach takes advantage of the utilization of high sensitive refractometers based on Lossy Mode Resonances generated by thin indium tin oxide (ITO) films fabricated onto the planar region of D-shaped optical fibers. CRP selectivity is obtained by means of the adhesion of a CRP specific aptamer chain onto the ITO film using the Layer-by-Layer (LbL) nano-assembly fabrication process. The sensing mechanism relies on resonance wavelength shifts originated by refractive index variations of the aptamer chain in presence of the target molecule. Fabricated devices show high selectivity to CRP when compared with other target molecules, such as urea or creatinine, while maintaining a low detection limit (0.0625 mg/L) and fast response time (61 s). Additionally, these sensors show a repetitive response for several days and are reusable after a cleaning process in ultrapure water.
Open Access
Optical fiber refractometers based on indium tin oxide coatings with response in the visible spectral region
(Elsevier, 2011) Ruiz Zamarreño, Carlos; López, S.; Hernáez Sáenz de Zaitigui, Miguel; Del Villar, Ignacio; Matías Maestro, Ignacio; Arregui San Martín, Francisco Javier; Ingeniería Eléctrica y Electrónica; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa eta Elektronikoa; Gobierno de Navarra / Nafarroako Gobernua
This work presents the fabrication of optical fiber refractometers based on indium tin oxide (ITO) coatings with response in the visible spectral region. ITO thin-films have been sputtered by employing a rotating mechanism that enables the fabrication of smooth homogeneous coatings onto the optical fiber core. The ITO coated optical fiber devices present several resonances in the visible and infra-red region. These resonances show high optical power attenuations (more than 10 dB) in the visible spectral region, which produces changes in the colour of the output visible light. Therefore, since these resonances shift as a function of the surrounding medium refractive index (SMRI), it is feasible to determine the refractive index of the outer medium in contact with the ITO coating by simply monitoring the chromatic coordinates of the visible output light.
Open Access
Aluminum doped zinc oxide (AZO) coated optical fiber LMR refractometers. An experimental demonstration
(Elsevier, 2019) Ozcariz Celaya, Aritz; Piña-Azamar, Dafne A.; Ruiz Zamarreño, Carlos; Domínguez Cruz, René; Arregui San Martín, Francisco Javier; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa, Elektronikoaren eta Telekomunikazio Ingeniaritzaren; Institute of Smart Cities - ISC; Ingeniería Eléctrica, Electrónica y de Comunicación; Gobierno de Navarra / Nafarroako Gobernua
This work presents the experimental demonstration of lossy mode resonance generation by means of aluminum doped zinc oxide thin-films. The use of such material may allow to optimize the performance of LMR-based sensors, obtaining good sensitivity at lower costs than other overlays, such as those including indium. The refractometric response of the fabricated devices is explored in different spectral regions. One refractometer working in the near infrared region was fabricated, obtaining a sensitivity of 2280 nm/RIU. A second refractometer working in the visible light spectrum was also fabricated. This second device allows to observe rough refractive index variations with the naked eye as a change of the color of the light propagating through the fiber, simplifying the setup needed for its use.
Open Access
Optical fiber thermo-refractometer
(Optica, 2022) Imas González, José Javier; Ruiz Zamarreño, Carlos; Del Villar, Ignacio; Cardozo da Silva, Jean Carlos; Oliveira, V.; Matías Maestro, Ignacio; Ingeniería Eléctrica, Electrónica y de Comunicación; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa, Elektronikoaren eta Telekomunikazio Ingeniaritzaren
This work presents the implementation of a thermo-refractometer, which integrates the measurement of both refractive index and temperature in a single optical fiber structure. To this purpose, a lossy mode resonance (LMR)-based refractometer is obtained by means of the deposition of a titanium dioxide (TiO2) thin film onto a side-polished (D-shaped) single mode fiber. Measurement and subsequent temperature compensation are achieved by means of a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) inscribed in the core of the D-shaped region. The LMR wavelength shift is monitored in transmission while the FBG (FBG peak at 1533 nm) displacement is observed in reflection. The LMR is sensitive to both the surrounding refractive index (SRI), with a sensitivity of 3725.2 nm/RIU in the 1.3324-1.3479 range, and the temperature (- 0.186 nm/°C); while the FBG is only affected by the temperature (32.6 pm/°C in the 25°C - 45°C range). With these values, it is possible to recover the SRI and temperature variations from the wavelength shifts of the LMR and the FBG, constituting a thermo-refractometer, where it is suppressed the effect of the temperature over the refractometer operation, which could cause errors in the fourth or even third decimal of the measured SRI value.
Open Access
Optical fiber sensors based on indium tin oxide surface plasmon resonance supporting coatings
(SPIE, 2009-10-05) Ruiz Zamarreño, Carlos; Hernáez Sáenz de Zaitigui, Miguel; Matías Maestro, Ignacio; Arregui San Martín, Francisco Javier; Ingeniería Eléctrica y Electrónica; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa eta Elektronikoa
In this work, surface plasmon resonance (SPR) based optical fiber sensors are revisited by using a transparent conductive coating, Indium Tin Oxide in our case, as the SPR supporting layer. The utilization of these coatings shifts the plasmon resonance band to the infra-red region and allows the tunability of the SPR wavelength by adjusting the film fabrication parameters. Here, we study the fabrication process of these novel devices and characterize their response to variations in the refractive index of the external medium opening the door to a wide range of applications.
Open Access
SnO2 based optical fiber refractometers
(SPIE, 2012) Sánchez Zábal, Pedro; Ruiz Zamarreño, Carlos; Hernáez Sáenz de Zaitigui, Miguel; Del Villar, Ignacio; Matías Maestro, Ignacio; Arregui San Martín, Francisco Javier; Ingeniería Eléctrica y Electrónica; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa eta Elektronikoa; Gobierno de Navarra / Nafarroako Gobernua
In this work, the fabrication and characterization of refractometers based on lossy mode resonances (LMR) is presented. Tin dioxide (SnO2) films deposited on optical fibers are used as the LMR supporting coatings. These resonances shift to the red as a function of the external refractive index, enabling the fabrication of robust and highly reproducible wavelength-based optical fiber refractometers. The obtained SnO2-based refractometer shows an average sensitivity of 7198 nm/refractive index unit (RIU) in the range 1.333-1.420 RIU.
Open Access
D-shape optical fiber pH sensor based on lossy mode resonances (LMRs)
(IEEE, 2016-01-07) Zubiate Orzanco, Pablo; Ruiz Zamarreño, Carlos; Del Villar, Ignacio; Matías Maestro, Ignacio; Arregui San Martín, Francisco Javier; Ingeniería Eléctrica, Electrónica y de Comunicación; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa, Elektronikoa eta Telekomunikazio Ingeniaritza
The fabrication and characterization of an optical fiber pH sensor based on Lossy Mode Resonances (LMRs) is presented. PAH/PAA polymeric thin-films fabricated onto side-polished D-shaped optical fibers are used as LMR supporting coatings. The thickness of PAH/PAA coatings can be modified as a function of the external medium pH. As a consequence of this variation, the effective refractive index of the structure will change, producing a shift of the LMR. The fabricated sensor has been used to measure pH from 4.0 to 5.0. This pH sensor showed a sensitivity of 101.3 nm per pH unit, which means a resolution of ~6×10-4 pH units by using a conventional communications Optical Spectrum Analyzer (OSA), which is an improvement over commercial pH sensors.
Open Access
Is there a frontier in sensitivity with lossy mode resonance (LMR) based refractometers?
(Nature Publishing Group, 2017) Ozcariz Celaya, Aritz; Ruiz Zamarreño, Carlos; Zubiate Orzanco, Pablo; Arregui San Martín, Francisco Javier; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa eta Elektronikoa; Institute of Smart Cities - ISC; Ingeniería Eléctrica y Electrónica; Gobierno de Navarra / Nafarroako Gobernua; Universidad Pública de Navarra / Nafarroako Unibertsitate Publikoa
A tin dioxide thin layer has been studied in order to improve the sensitivity of lossy mode resonances (LMR) based sensors. The effects of the thin film thickness and the polarization of light in a SnO2 coated D-shaped single mode optical fiber have been evaluated. The optimization of such parameters in the fabrication of refractometers have led to an unprecedented sensitivity of over one million nanometers per refractive index unit (RIU), which means a sensitivity below 10^(−9) RIU with a pm resolution detector. This achievement is a milestone for the development of new high sensitivity devices and opens the door to new industrial applications, such as gear oil degradation, or biomedical devices where previous devices could not provide enough sensitivity.
Open Access
Low cutoff wavelength etched SMS structures towards verification of the quality of automotive antifreeze
(IEEE, 2020) Rodríguez Rodríguez, Wenceslao Eduardo; Rodríguez Rodríguez, Adolfo Josué; Ruiz Zamarreño, Carlos; Del Villar, Ignacio; Zúñiga Alanís, Manuel; Ingeniería Eléctrica, Electrónica y de Comunicación; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa, Elektronikoaren eta Telekomunikazio Ingeniaritzaren; Gobierno de Navarra / Nafarroako Gobernua, 2019 904 116; Universidad Pública de Navarra / Nafarroako Unibertsitate Publikoa, PJUPNA26
Optical fiber single mode-multimode-single mode (SMS) structures can be used as wavelength detection-based sensors. In this work, we focus on the performance at short wavelengths, where optical sources and detectors are less expensive. Here, a self-image band with a high transmission power is monitored in this short-wavelength range. In addition, the diameter and the length of the SMS structure have been optimized in order to improve the sensitivity of the device. In this sense, a maximum refractive index sensitivity of 305 nm/RIU was achieved by an etched SMS with a diameter of 34μ m. Furthermore, the obtained devices were used for testing the quality of automotive coolant and antifreeze liquid.