Paula M. P. Gouvêa

Dengue immunoassay with an LSPR fiber optic sensor.

Dengue fever is a viral disease that affects millions of people worldwide. Specific tests for dengue are not usually performed due to high costs, complicated procedures and, in some cases, long time to yield a result. For widespread use of specific tests to be possible, fast, reliable and fairly simple methods are needed. In this paper, we present a new dengue diagnostic method for the acute phase of the infection. The method proposed uses an all-optical fiber sensor based on Localized Surface Plasmon Resonance (LSPR) and specular reflection from gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). Dengue anti-NS1 antibody was immobilized on AuNPs deposited on the endface of a standard multimode fiber (62.5 µm/125 µm). The sensor is able to detect NS1 antigen at different concentrations, with limit of quantification estimated to be 0.074 μg/ml = 1.54 nM. These results indicate that the sensor could potentially be used for dengue diagnosis in the acute phase of the infection.

In-fiber Fabry-Perot interferometer for strain and magnetic field sensing.

In this paper we discuss the results obtained with an in-fiber Fabry-Perot interferometer (FPI) used in strain and magnetic field (or force) sensing. The intrinsic FPI was constructed by splicing a small section of a capillary optical fiber between two pieces of standard telecommunication fiber. The sensor was built by attaching the FPI to a magnetostrictive alloy in one configuration and also by attaching the FPI to a small magnet in another. Our sensors were found to be over 4 times more sensitive to magnetic fields and around 10 times less sensitive to temperature when compared to sensors constructed with Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG).

Gold nanoparticles on the surface of soda-lime glass: morphological, linear and nonlinear optical characterization

Materials presenting high optical nonlinearity, such as materials containing metal nanoparticles (NPs), can be used in various applications in photonics. This motivated the research presented in this paper, where morphological, linear and nonlinear optical characteristics of gold NPs on the surface of bulk soda-lime glass substrates were investigated as a function of nanoparticle height. The NPs were obtained by annealing gold (Au) thin films previously deposited on the substrates. Pixel intensity histogram fitting on Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) images was performed to obtain the thickness of the deposited film. Image analysis was employed to obtain the statistical distribution of the average height of the NPs. In addition, absorbance spectra of the samples before and after annealing were measured. Finally, the nonlinear refractive index (n2) and the nonlinear absorption index (α2) at 800 nm were obtained before and after annealing by using the thermally managed eclipse Z-scan (TM-EZ) technique with a Ti:Sapphire laser (150 fs pulses). Results show that both n2 and α2 at this wavelength change signs after the annealing and that the samples presented a high nonlinear refractive index.

Time evolution of the second-order nonlinear distribution of poled Infrasil samples during annealing experiments

The spatial distribution of the second-order nonlinearity induced in thermally poled Infrasil silica samples is recorded after thermal annealing experiments. Two regimes have been studied: short and long poling durations. For short poling durations, the observations are in good agreement with a model where only one ion type recombines inside the depletion region. The nonlinear distribution and erasure observed for the other case are well explained by considering the addition of another positive-charged ion injected during the poling process. This second ion acts as a barrier during thermal annealing and reduces the mobility of the first one.

Internal specular reflection from nanoparticle layers on the end face of optical fibers

Metal nanoparticles deposited on a dielectric substrate exhibit an absorption peak due to localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR). Changes in the refractive index of the surrounding medium cause the LSPR band to shift in wavelength. In this paper, gold nanoparticles were placed on the end face of an optical fiber spliced to a reflection setup. As expected in reflection geometries, the back-reflected signal exhibits a dip at wavelengths in the LSPR band when the fiber tip is surrounded by ambient air (n = 1). However, as the refractive index of the surrounding medium is increased, there is a gradual inversion from a dip (n = 1.0) to a peak (n = 2.0). To explain these results, a model based on absorption and interference between the specular reflections from the fiber/nanoparticle and nanoparticle/ambient interfaces is proposed, showing that our reflection configuration can be used in sensing applications.

Measurement of depletion region width in poled silica

The width of the depletion region in fused-silica samples thermally poled during various periods of time is investigated experimentally with four previously reported characterization techniques in an attempt to unify their findings. Although all measurements give a similar width of the depletion region, it is shown that the determination of the profile of chi(2) is also required for a good estimate of the nonlinearity induced by poling.

PAMAM dendrimer/gold nanoparticle nanocomposites for a reflection LSPR optical fiber sensor

The viability of a fiber optic reflection-based Localized Surface Plasmon Resonance (LSPR) sensor using layer-by-layer technique composed by PAMAM-AuNP with and without AuNP-citrate was investigated. The PAMAM-AuNPs and PAMAM-AuNPs/AuNP-citrate layers were deposited on the endface of an optical fiber and the reflected signal was acquired. Deposition time and number of layers were optimized viewing LSPR sensing applications. Results with and without AuNP-citrate were compared. The sensor is being characterized as a refractive index sensor.

Stability aspects of a fiber optic sensor for CO2 phase monitoring

In this paper we discuss the stability and effectiveness of an optical fiber sensor for CO2 phase monitoring that could be used inside pipelines, rock caverns and steel tanks for Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) systems; in Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) processes; and in mapping of natural reservoirs. The sensor is an optical fiber refractometer and is shown to be capable of identifying phase changes and when two-phase systems co-exist, even near the phase transition line. When properly calibrated, the sensor can be used to obtain the refractive index and density (calculated with the Lorentz-Lorentz formula) of CO2.

Fiber Optic Sensor with Au Nanoparticles for Dengue Immunoassay

We present a new dengue diagnose method with an all-optical fiber sensor based on LSPR from Au nanoparticles.

Comparison of characterization techniques and the effect of surface condition in poled silica

Four characterization techniques are compared in the measurement of the depletion region of silica poled during different time intervals. The effect of pre-etching the samples prior to poling is also investigated.