Chemical detection demonstrated using an evanescent wave graphene optical sensor

摘要

Graphene devices have been constructed on silicon mirrors, and the graphene is optically probed through an evanescent wave interaction in an attenuated total reflectance configuration using an infrared spectrometer. The graphene is electrically biased in order to tune its optical properties. Exposure of the device to the chemicals iodine and ammonia causes observable and reversible changes to graphene's optical absorption spectra in the mid to near infrared range which can be utilized for the purpose of sensing. Electrical current measurements through the graphene are made simultaneously with optical measurements allowing for simultaneous sensing using two separate detection modalities. Our current results reveal sub-ppm detection limits for iodine and approximately 100ppm detection limits for ammonia. We have also demonstrated that this approach will work at 1.55 μm, which opens up the possibility for graphene optical sensors that leverage commercial telecom light sources.