Abstract
High sensitivity volatile organic compounds (VOCs) sensors based on a tapered small core single mode fiber (TSCSMF) and a microfiber coupler (MFC) are reported. The TSCSMF had a waist diameter of ∼5.1 μm and the MFC had a waist diameter of ∼1.9 μm each and both were fabricated using a customized microheater brushing technique. Silica based materials containing immobilized Nile red prepared by sol-gel method with two different recipes (recipe I and recipe II) are investigated. Initially recipe I based coating materials were applied to the surfaces of the TSCSMF and MFC. The experimental results show that the sensor based on an MFC shows much better sensitivities of −0.130 nm/ppm and −0.036 nm/ppm to ethanol and methanol than those of the TSCSMF based sensor. The corresponding minimum detectable concentration change of the MFC based sensor are calculated to be ∼77 ppb and ∼281 ppb to ethanol and methanol respectively. Both sensors are demonstrated fast response times of less than 5 min, while the recovery times varied from 7 min to 12 min. In addition, another TSCSMF based sample (∼7.0 μm) coated with a mixed layer of sol silica and Nile red prepared by recipe II was fabricated to achieve simultaneous measurement of ethanol and methanol, employing a second-order matrix approach.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 1-8 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | Sensors and Actuators, B: Chemical |
Volume | 271 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 15 Oct 2018 |
Keywords
- Nile red
- Optical fiber sensor
- Sol-gel silica
- Tapered fiber
- Volatile organic compounds
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials
- Instrumentation
- Condensed Matter Physics
- Surfaces, Coatings and Films
- Metals and Alloys
- Electrical and Electronic Engineering
- Materials Chemistry