Aluminum doped zinc oxide (AZO) coated optical fiber LMR refractometers—An experimental demonstration

• Published in: Sensors and actuators. B, Chemical Vol. 281; pp. 698 - 704
• Main Authors: Ozcariz, Aritz, Piña-Azamar, Dafne A., Zamarreño, Carlos R., Dominguez, René, Arregui, Francisco J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Lausanne Elsevier B.V 15-02-2019; Elsevier Science Ltd
• Subjects: Aluminum; Aluminum doped zinc oxide (AZO); Lossy mode resonances (LMR); Optical fiber; Optical fibers; Optical sensor; Refractivity; Refractometer; Refractometers; Sensitivity; Thin films; Zinc coatings; Zinc oxide; Zinc oxides; Optical sensor; Aluminum doped zinc oxide (AZO); Refractometer; Lossy mode resonances (LMR); Optical fiber
• ISSN: 0925-4005; 1873-3077
• DOI: 10.1016/j.snb.2018.10.158

•AZO thin films have been used for the fabrication of optical fiber sensors.•The coatings have been studied to tune the resonances at the desired optical range.•The sensitivity obtained with this sensors reaches 2280 nm/RIU.•AZO thin films may allow the fabrication of LMR-based sensors for new applications.
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.