Results in Physics 46 (2023) 106266

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Results in Physics
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/rinp

Highly sensitive open channel based PCF-SPR sensor for analyte refractive
index sensing
Nazrul Islam a, *, Md. Faizul Huq Arif b, Mohammad Abu Yousuf a, *, Sayed Asaduzzaman c
a
Institute of Information Technology, Jahangirnagar University, Dhaka 1342, Bangladesh
b
Department of ICT (DoICT), Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Division, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, Dhaka, Bangladesh
c
Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Rangamati Science and Technology University, Rangamati, Bangladesh

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Keywords: The control of light in photonic crystal fiber (PCF) is a special characteristic that is obtained due to the relations
Plasmonic sensors between material and light. In this paper, a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) based PCF sensor is introduced with
Photonic crystal fiber two open-channel which cover an extensive field of bio-detection applications. Gold (Au) is considered as an
Surface plasmon resonance
effective plasmonic ingredient. The transformation of light through the fiber core is coupled with the gold and
Confinement loss
Open-channel
stimulates SPR. The proposed PCF-SPR sensor reports the highest wavelength sensitivity (WS) of 7000 nm/RIU
(refractive index unit) as well as an amplitude sensitivity (AS) of 593.61 RIU− 1. It also acquires an increased
sensor resolution of 1.43 × 10− 5 RIU and a decent figure of merit (FOM) is 94.97 RIU− 1. Additionally, the
operating constraints of the sensor such as corresponding air-holes diameter, the pitch, gold layer (Au) thickness
and open-channel radius are revised to improve detection performance. The overall measurement is carried out
over a broad range of variations in refractive index (RI) from 1.33 to 1.40. The sensor’s appreciable performance
makes it suitable for bio-sensing applications.

Introduction
The surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensor has gained an
increasing amount of research attention in recent years. Using optical
waveguides, SPR offers highly efficient and cost-effective devices for a
variety of sensing applications. The SPR technique was first explained in
1968 [1]. During the same year, optical stimulation of surface plasmons
by the technique of diffraction total reflection was reported by [2,3]. In
1983, a practical demonstration of SPR-based application was intro­
duced for detecting gases and bio-molecules [4]. Since then, there has
been a great deal of interest in research on SPR techniques. However, the
conventional prism-coupled SPR sensor had its limitations because it
was large and expensive. In 1993, the SPR opened a new window for
overcoming these limitations with the proposal of SPR sensor-based
optical fiber technology [5]. Thus, scientists and researchers integrate
PCF with SPR for the ideal detection and use it for a variety of detection
applications. Due to the prompt response, flexible design, high sensi­
tivity, and birefringent characteristics, PCF-based SPR is used in vari­
eties of applications, for example, gas sensing, environmental
monitoring, food safety, medical diagnostics, organic compound detec­
tion, bio-imaging control etc. [6–8]. Currently, the SPR-based PCF
sensor is growing popular for its flexible design, micro-size, and bire­
fringent characteristics. There are numerous previous reports [9–11]
explored the performance of PCF for numerous applications by con­
trolling different optical properties of metal.
Photonic Crystal Fiber (PCF) with a direct metal coating is consid­
ered as the most elegant choice for SPR sensor because it provides more
flexibility. Over the last few years, various research works [12–14] have
been using plasmonic materials, for instance, gold (Au), Titanium di­
oxide (TiO2), aluminum (Al), silver (Ag), copper (Cu). This exploration
of the practical results of PCF with plasmonic materials of significant
performance is taken into account when the surface field is exposed.
Generally, the leading active plasmonic materials, for example, silver
(Ag) and gold (Au) are employed in SPR-based PCF sensors. Chemically
reliable and bio-compatible plasmonic materials are gold (Au) which is
affected to advance a peak resonance [15]. However, silver indicates a
lower peak than gold. In addition, silver is oxidized and reformulated,
thereby it reduces the detection accuracy of the analyte [16,17]. Hence,
this research work used Gold (Au) as plasmonic materials. A better
interpretation is required with the high-performance fiber optic sensor
system. It has a distinctive impact on the gold layer thickness that is
positioned above PCF-SPR surface. The situation improves detection

* Corresponding authors.
E-mail addresses: nazrul@mbstu.ac.bd (N. Islam), yousuf@juniv.edu (M. Abu Yousuf).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rinp.2023.106266
Received 20 December 2022; Received in revised form 26 January 2023; Accepted 4 February 2023
Available online 8 February 2023
2211-3797/© 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
N. Islam et al.
accuracy while reducing the complexity of design and fabrication.
According to the article [18], the authors suggested a sensor covered
with gold and graphene layers. After coating the sensor with graphene it
showed improved sensitivity than before. The sensor has been provided
WS of 1900 nm/RIU for gold and WS of 2290 nm/RIU for graphene layer
coating. Besides, the article demonstrates improved performance in WS
which is 390 nm/RIU using a graphene layer. The work [19], a PCF
sensor was also constructed from gold and gold nanowire-coated
structures. The film and a nanowire significantly enhanced the sensi­
tivity as well. The maximum AS achieved for the gold nanowire (Au) was
4471 nm/RIU for the gold nanowire (Au) with the RI variant from 1.33
to 1.38. Similarly, in a research [20], a multi-channel PCF-SPR with a
gold and silver plasmonic layer was proposed for multi-analyte sensing
applications. The sensor is optimized to assure propagation landscapes,
such as CL, AS, resonance state, resolution, etc. The work is performed
with the WS of 2500 nm/RIU and also resolution of 4 × 10− 5 RIU for
channel 1. The resolution of channel 2 was 3.2 × 10–5 RIU, and it
likewise achieved WS of 3083 nm/RIU. Similarly, Yasli et al. [21],
suggested a multi-channel PCF-SPR with plasmonic materials such as
gold and silver. Here, numerous propagation ingredients such as CL
resolution, and WS are analyzed for an optimal design using all possible
RI variations. The sensor is produced in WS of 4100 nm/RIU, and 3820
nm/RIU for channel 1 and channel 2 correspondingly.
Recently, there has been a huge volume of work [22–25] published
with highly sensitive plasmonic sensors. However, current fabrication
techniques are not sufficient to produce this complex structure without
further intricacy. Moreover, it appears from the studies that the benefit
of coating layer is incapable of replacing the metallic film. This prevents
to increase the efficiency of the sensor. Practically, the main challenge of
any fiber is to fabricate using the actual value of parameters that is
specified in structural design. The outstanding performance will be
worthless if the sensor is not able to fabricate practically at a lower cost.
Due to the complicated structure and different diameters of air-holes and
their arrangement hamper sensing performance. There are a number of
previous PCF-SPR sensors that pose challenges for the maintenance of
fabricate tolerance. This can be improved by choosing a standard design
parameters as well as an appropriate internal detection approach.
Therefore, there is a research space to enhance sensing performance as
well as maintain fabrication tolerances in the sensor design. Proper se­
lection of the analyte channel and structural parameters can lead to
strong coupling among SPP and core mode, thereby improving detection
performance. Thus, a sensor with a unique sample design is required
where small air-holes, big air-holes, open-channel, PML, and all sensor
performance constraints, such as enormous sensitivity, low CL, AS, and
WS should be addressed.
Therefore, the study introduced a simple two open-channel PCF-SPR
sensor to facilitate infiltration of analyte which improve detection per­
formance. The two open-channel are coated with a thin layer of gold to
achieve the unknown analyte. Gold is chosen as a plasmonic material
due to its well-known stability when interacting with chemicals. Addi­
tionally, open-channels are introduced to reduce the distance from the
core to the metal layer to accelerate detection performance and generate
more SPR over the metal-dielectric interface. Furthermore, the work
studies in depth to adjust the gold thickness, variation of air-holes
diameter, pitch, and open-channel radius toward achieving noticeable
detection performance.
Design and modeling
Proposed design
This proposed sensor is to provide an optical leakage movement
among the core and the dielectric layer of metal. The surface plasmon
wave (SPW) is produced by means of an optical escape signal that ac­
celerates the movement through the metal with electrons. The oscil­
lating frequency of the related electrons is synchronized to the frequency
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Results in Physics 46 (2023) 106266
of the incident light. The polarization of the surface plasmon (SPP) is
defined when the ultimate energy is associated with free electrons. The
transferred light traveling over fiber core, produces an evanescent field
that is prompting the surface plasmon to propagate alongside the metal-
dielectric interface. In resonating mode, a phase match ensues among
two modes such as SPP and core mode. The outcome shows a strong
energy distribution of the core mode to SPP mode. There is a specific
wavelength at core-guided SPP mode. The proposed PCF-SPR sensor is
based on the principles.
The 2D cross-sectional views of two open-channel based plasmonic
sensors are presented in Fig. 1(a) and the 3D views are also visible in
Fig. 1(b). The proposed structure was conceived on three consecutive
levels. The inner portion of the layout is silica, which is organized using
two open-channel, eighteen big air-holes (d1) and four small air-holes
(d2). The small air-holes (d2) are set in a square shape. The two small
air-holes (d1) are positioned on two sides towards the core to effectively
operate the evanescent field. Moreover, remaining two small air-holes
(d2) are placed near the open-channel. This is used because of keeping
enough space to enlarge the radius (r) of the open-channel. It regulates
the propagating light of the incident which is directly impacted by the
metal layers. This type of arrangement helps to create birefringence.
These are supported to enhance sensitivity by using a high coupling
amongst metal layers and the core. Besides, some air-holes are missing
to place the open-channel. This structure ensures that there was enough
space to increase the open-channel radius (r). It also improves the SPP
mode. The other layers are the analyte and the lattice of the metallic
layer. In comparison to previous work [26,27], the proposed design
features simpler, fewer air-holes, and only two types of air-holes (d1, d2),
which makes it easier to fabricate and lowers the cost of implementing
the sensor. Recent studies typically use copper, aluminum, gold, silver,
as well as other metals as plasmonic materials. Gold is practiced as a
plasmonic material in this instance.
Additionally, the perfectly matched layer (PML) is used in the
embroidered portion of the pattern. This layer is included in order to
reduce undesirable non-physical radiation to the surface. The simulation
focuses on PML with a thickness of 0.735 µm. It was applied at the end of
the convergence test. The coupling of light from the PCF surface’s core is
consumed by the scattering conditions for the boundary and PML. This is
utilized to absorb the dispersed evanescent field outside of the
computing area. The PML layer is absent from a practical sensor because
it is primarily used to improve the simulation. Mesh elements are
discovered to have a major impact on guided modes. A greater mesh size
decreases the amount of triangular elements, which speeds up compu­
tation and may produce unreliable results. In view of this fact, the work
has used “extra fine” mesh size element which could map small air-holes
and offer accurate outcomes as expected. Convergence experiments
have been run utilizing optimized PML thickness and mesh size. For the
period of simulation the entire number of Triangles is 23728, Edge el­
ements is 1554, Vertex elements is 110, number of degrees of freedom
(Electric field) are 166,417 as well as mesh area is 126 µm2 is also
considered.
The structure is optimized by changing the values of various pa­
rameters to get the maximum performance. Several times the design is
performed with the necessary requirement after the parameters are
optimized. The parameter values are pitch Λ = 2.12 µm, open-channel
radius r = 2.65 µm, gold (Au) layer thickness tg = 0.04 µm, big air-
holes diameter d1 = 40 µm, small air-holes diameter d2 = 20 µm.
Mathematical initiations
The proposed PCF-SPR sensor considers fused silica as the base
material. The sellmeier equation makes it easier to connect the wave­
length and RI used to find the appropriate RI for various necessary
wavelengths. The following formula is given below [28].
N. Islam et al.
Fig. 1. Proposed PCF-SPR design (a) Cross section 2D view (b) 3D view.
B 1 λ2 B 2 λ2 B 3 λ2
(λ) = 1 + 2
+ 2 + 2
λ − C1 λ − C2 λ − C3
In this case, n represents the pure silica RI. The λ also denotes the
input wavelength in micrometer. The coefficients of Sellmeier symbol
are B1, B2, B3 and C1, C2, C3. In this case, the coefficient values of fused
silica (Si) are 0.69616300, 0.407942600, 0.89779400 and
0.00467914826, 0.0135120631, 97.9340025 accordingly. There are
observable impacts to peak resonance and the use of plasmonic mate­
rials such as gold (Au). The complex value of gold’s (Au) RI can be
calculated from Drude-Lorentz model. This is expressed using the
following equations [29].
ω2D Δε.Ω2L
εAu = ε∞ − − ( 2 ) (2)
ω(ω + jγD ) ω − Ω2L + jΓL ω
where εAu indicates to the permittivity of Au and all others parameters
such as ΓL , ΩL , ε∞ , ω, γD , ωD , values can be found in the article [30].
The confinement loss (CL) is the loss that could be concentrated and
data to be transferred is limited to the center which cannot disperse. The
CL can be calculated in terms of diameter, height, the shape of air-holes,
etc. In particular, the peak CL measurement is performed to assess the
capabilities of PCF-SPR sensor. The increased evanescent field within
the cladding area affects the CL that enhances sensitivity. The term CL
(α) can be measured from the formula which is given below [31].
α(dB/cm) = 8.686 × K0 Im(neff ) × 104
where Im(neff ) refers to imaginary part of RI and also K0 = 2π/λ sym­
bolize wave number in free space. Besides, λ indicates incident wave­
length.
The resonance wavelength variation in peak wavelength relative to
the RI variation for analyte is well-defined as wavelength sensitivity
(WS). The WS (Sλ) is a crucial constraint to calculate the performance
using the wavelength interrogation method [32].
Sλ (nm/RIU) = Δλpeak /Δna
where Δλpeak identifies the peak wavelength variation and Δna refers to
two different adjacent RI.
Amplitude Sensivity (AS) is a modified investigative technique and
supported at a specific operational wavelength. The spectral shift is not
necessary in the AS interrogation, and therefore provides a lower rate
and facility. AS is the parameter which is commonly used for sensor
performance. The term is derived from the following equation [33].
( ) 1 ∂α( λ, na )
SA RIU − 1 = − x (5)
α( λ, na ) ∂na
Here, CL is denoted as α( λ, na ) and ∂α(λ, ηa) refers to the variation in
CL.
Resolution (R) is a criterion that supports to realize the sensor
Results in Physics 46 (2023) 106266
detection capability. The resolution provides a sense of the degree to
(1) which a variation in RI could be identified. The following formula is set
to the resolution [34].
Rλ (RIU) =
∂na X ∂λmin
(6)
∂λpeak
Here, ∂λmin point to minimum and ∂λpeak denotes to peak wavelength
variation.
The length of the sensor (SL) is varied according to the RI. The SL for
a PCF can be determined using the equation below [35].
L=
1
(7)
α(λ, na )
where α(λ, na ) symbolizes CL at a particular wavelength and RI.
The key element in determining performance is the sensor’s signal to
noise ratio (SNR). In general, a higher SNR is associated with a small
standard deviation of spectrum change. Improved spectrum width and
SNR will also enable a greater detection limit, which may be evaluated
using the Figure of Merit (FOM). Another significant metric of sensor
performance is FOM. The following calculation can be used to get the
FOM [36].
Sλ (nm/RIU)
FOM = (8)
FWHM (nm)
(3) where Sλ denotes the sensitivity of each analyte RI. The difference be­
tween the dual independent transferrable values at which the response
variable is equivalent to half of its peak value is known as full width at
half maximum (FWHM).
Method of simulation
This study FEM-based COMSOL Multiphysics version 5.3a is prac­
ticed the numerical analysis of sensor performance in the workplace.
Fig. 2 is the flowchart of the method applied through the simulation.
(4)
Initially, COMSOL Multiphysics software is started on a computer. Then,
using the geometry section, the structure was designed with the soft­
ware. Various parameters are specified to adjust various measurements
at the time of design. Thereafter, materials were included in the “add
material” section. In order to calculate detection properties, equations
were correctly integrated at each stage. Afterward, a fine mesh size
mode was selected for mesh construction and the development of
different outputs. When analyzing the meshes, the sensor was divided
into homogenous triangular pieces. A mode analysis was also carried out
on the X-Y plane of the PCF. Once the “study” section was calculated, the
electrical field of the designed sensor was distributed start the results
section. The simulated data are extracted from a global - evaluation
section of the software. The final outcome is sketched using MATLAB.
3
N. Islam et al.
Fig. 2. Flowchart of simulation method.
Results and analysis
This section provides details about the propagation features of pro­
posed PCF-SPR sensor. The creation of the efficacy of SPR in a PCF de­
pends upon the intensity of the transient area and the number of exterior
electrons emitted. When the fundamental mode transfers in the central
area, the evanescent signals propagate in the overlay of PCF. The surface
plasmon wave (SPW) is an optical property which is produced when SPP
mode and central mode of actual parts of RI are equivalent. Wavelength
at this point is mentioned as resonance wavelength (RW). At this
wavelength, the SPW is operated and it could be noticed by the acute
height within the fundamental mode loss curve. A slight variation in the
RI of a sensor can be viewed as a noticeable change in the resonant
wavelength. This measurement of shifting RW is well-used to sense the
unknown analyte. In addition, the visible light spectrum spans 400 to
700 nm. In contrast, the near infrared electromagnetic spectrum has a
( )
4
Results in Physics 46 (2023) 106266
wavelength range between 750 and 2500 nm. The proposed PCF-SPR is
also applied with visible and near-infrared wavelengths between 550 nm
and 950 nm. This SPR based PCF sensor was operated only in the visible
as well as near-infrared spectral region because of the high accessibility
of optical metals and sufficient light sources for sensors.
Properties of coupling
Fig. 3(a) and (b) illustrate the sensor’s electric field as well as the
relevant fundamental x- and y-axis polarization light. In Fig. 3(c), dis­
plays the y-polarized plasmonic mode, which indicates excellent guiding
characteristics of the sensible organization of cladding holes. Fig. 3(d)
illustrates the resonance condition’s state as well as the relationship
between the analyte’s dispersion and loss spectrum for the analyte na =
1.39 as the wavelength ranges from 65 μm to 95 μm. The CL is an
additional form of loss that is happening due to waveguide geometry.
Fig. 3. Presentation of light coupling intensity of (a)
x-polar. light for core guided mode, (b) y-polar. light
for core guided mode, (c) y-polar. light for SPP mode
(d) Illustration of the resonance criteria phenomenon
of y polarized light with fundamental core mode (Blue
dotted line) and SPP mode (green dotted line) at
wavelength λ = 0.77 µm and loss spectrum for na =
1.39. Another parameter value is set to Λ = 2.12 µm,
d1 = 40 µm, r = 2.65 µm, tg = 0.04 µm and d2 = 20 µm.
(For interpretation of the references to colour in this
figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version
of this article)
N. Islam et al.
When the core-guided mode, SPP mode, and effective index cross, it is
seen that CL is at its highest point.
Additionally, it has been precisely demonstrated that for analyte na
of 1.39, the intersection of the real component of the effective index
(neff) of the y-polarized fundamental core-guided mode and the y-
polarized plasmonic mode occurs at the wavelength of λ = 0.77 µm. This
particular wavelength is considered to be a resonant wavelength. Within
this resonance wavelength, CL reaches a peak value. Sensor performance
is observed in y-polarized for high coupling compared to x-polarized
mode. In the analysis of sensor performance, significant coupling in the
y-polarized mode is taken into consideration. The proposed design has a
significant impact on detection performance that has also been taken
into account. The work also investigated CL, WS, AS, resolution with
various geometrical parameters of the sensor.
Impact on amplitude and wavelength sensitivities
It is observed from the Fig. 4(a), that the values of Δλpeak for the RI
range are 10 nm, 10 nm, 20 nm, 30 nm, 40 nm, 50 nm, 70 nm. Where,
reflective index na is varied from 1.33 to 1.40 with an interval of 0.01, in
consequence. Applying equation (4), corresponding wavelength sensi­
tivities (WS) of 1000, 1000, 2000, 3000, 4000, 5000, and 7000 nm/RIU
have been determined as shown in Fig. 4(a). The obtained data also
depict that the sensor has lowermost WS of 1000 nm/RIU and upper­
most WS of 7000 nm/RIU as reported summary in Table 1. The change
of the CL curve is also obtained with the variation of na between 1.33
and 1.40. Peak loss was observed to increase steadily from 0.70 µm to
0.85 µm. The highest peak loss values are 172.296 dB/cm, 302.78 dB/
cm for the na analyte at 1.39 and 1.40 RIU, respectively. Moreover,
supposing a 1% variation in transmission intensity, a resolution of up to
1.43 × 10− 5 RIU can be reached at na of 1.39.
Fig. 4(b), illustrates a change in AS for na = 1.33 to 1.39 with the
variation of the operating wavelength. Moreover, it also depicts the
Fig. 4. (a) Variation of CL spectrums when na value range between 1.33 and 1.40 (b) Dependence of AS when na value range between 1.33 and 1.39; (c) variation of
WS with the changes of RI, (d) Changing of sensor length (cm) with different values of RI; the rest of the design values are permanent with d1 = 40 µm, tg = 0.04 µm, r
= 2.65 µm. Λ = 2.12 µm and d2 = 20 µm.
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Results in Physics 46 (2023) 106266
highest AS of 593.61 RIU− 1 at wavelength λ = 0.85 μm within na = 1.39.
It is also apparent that higher values of na show higher sensitivity. The
AS peaked at 214.71 RIU− 1, 370.43 RIU− 1 as well as 593.61 RIU− 1 for
analyte na of 1.37, 1.38 and 1.39 as a consequence. Additionally, Fig. 4
(c), shows a variation of WS in relation to the RI. The range of RI from
1.33 to 1.39, the sensor has obtained the highest WS of 7000 nm/RIU at
na of 1.39. Also Fig. 4(d), depicted that with the increase of RI, there is a
gradual decrease in sensor length.
Impact of thickness of golden layer
As expected, the wavelength interrogation technique can be used to
compute the CL. A minor change in the RI is assigned for the detection of
an unknown analyte. In Fig. 5 (a), it was plotted that the reliance of the
CL curves on the thickness of the gold (tg) layer with the change in
wavelength. The investigation also indicates that the higher value of the
tg is responsible for lower values of CL. It is discovered that the loss peak
is reached at 57.72 dB/cm 113.58 dB/cm as well as 134.35 dB/cm
respectively, for the gold layer thickness (tg) values of 0.05 µm. 0.04 µm
and 0.03 µm, where analyte na = 1.38. The study reveals the same
characteristics for na = 1.39. Consequently, it is apparent that the loss is
increased for the thinner gold layer, while slightly decreased for the
thicker gold layer. Furthermore, from this study, the attainable CL peak
of 198.81 dB/cm is found at na = 1.39, λ = 0.7 µm with gold layer
thickness tg = 0.30 µm.
Energy from core mode to SPP mode can be reduced with a thicker
gold layer, which results in lower sensitivity. The scenario of the effect of
tg on AS is presented in Fig. 5(b). It is also exposed that with the change
in wavelength, initially, AS values remain approximately the same.
However, the wavelength λ = 0.70 µm, 0.77 µm, and 0.8 µm showed
sharp changes in sensitivity curves. The computed sensitivities are
340.87 RIU− 1, 355.71 RIU− 1 and 335.71 RIU− 1 with a tg of 0.03 µm,
0.04 µm as well as 0.05 µm accordingly.
N. Islam et al. Results in Physics 46 (2023) 106266

Table 1
Performances of the designed SPR based PCF.
Analyte Shift of Peak loss Reson. peak wave Reson. Peak shift Wave. Sens. Sλ Resolution R Amp. Sen. SA FWHM FOM
(na) Δna (dB/cm) λpeak (nm) Δλpeak (nm) (nm/RIU) (RIU) (RIU− 1) (nm) RIU− 1

1.33 0.01 36.00 610 10 1000 1 × 10− 4 179.96 68.2 14.66

1.34 0.01 39.49 620 10 1000 1 × 10− 4 82.44 74.1 13.50
1.35 0.01 50.72 630 20 2000 5 × 10− 5 109.10 71.1 28.13
1.36 0.01 65.03 650 30 3000 3.33 × 10− 5 146.13 69.7 43.04
1.37 0.01 86.43 680 40 4000 2.5 × 10− 5 214.72 69.6 57.47
1.38 0.01 117.71 720 50 5000 2 × 10− 5 370.43 73.95 67.61
1.39 0.01 172.30 770 70 7000 1.43 £ 10− 5 593.61 73.7 94.97
1.40 0.01 302.78 840 – – – –

Fig. 5. (a) CL versus wavelength (λ) for different values of tg with the variation of analyte na between 1.38 and 1.39, (b) AS versus wavelength (λ) changes of tg values
with na = 1.38.

Impact of large circle diameter diameter (d1) of air-holes from 30 µm to 50 µm with an interval of 10 µm,
the loss peak values are obtained 164.80 dB/cm, 115.87 dB/cm, and
Fig. 6(a), indicates the changes in CL with a larger diameter of air 80.48 dB/cm in consequence; where na = 1.38 at the wavelength λ =
holes (d1). The investigated results show that increasing the larger 0.72 µm. Likewise, the observation remains consistent for na = 1.39. The

Fig. 6. (a) Changes CL versus wavelength variation of large circles diameter d1, Where different values of d1 are 30 µm, 40 µm, as well as 50 µm for analyte na from
1.38 to 1.39, (b) Curves of wavelength (λ) versus AS with na = 1.38.

6
N. Islam et al.
values of peak loss for na = 1.39 are 246.89 dB/cm, 172.296 dB/cm, and
106.89 dB/cm where d1 = 30 μm, 40 μm, and 50 μm accordingly at λ =
0.77 µm. The variations in AS of various values of d1 are presented in
Fig. 6(b). It is apparently perceived that during the increase of diameter
values of the bigger air-holes, there is no remarkable difference in the
AS.
Impact of small circle thickness
Fig. 7(a), demonstrates the CL which depends on wavelength vari­
ations with different diameters of smaller circles (d2). It seems that as the
value of the smallest diameter decreases, the loss curve increases
slightly. With the values of d2 = 15 µm, 20 µm, and 25 µm, the calculated
CL peak values are 173.54 dB/cm, 117.70 dB/cm, and 77.02 dB/cm
respectively with na = 1.38, where λ = 0.72 µm.
Furthermore, it is found a maximum depth of peak loss of about
257.56 dB/cm for d2 of 15 μm with na of 1.39. Fig. 7(b), indicates the
changes in AS of the designed sensor for the deviation of the values of d2.
It is evident that there are no recognizable changes in the variation of d2
from 15 μm to 20 µm. However, for 25 µm of d2, it is found that a
meaningful variation of AS. For smaller diameter values of 15 µm, 20
µm, and 25 µm, it is found that the sensor’s AS are 329 RIU− 1, 335.71
RIU− 1, 133.13 RIU− 1 respectively at λ = 0.77 µm, where na = 1.38.
Impact of inconsistency of pitch
With the variation in pitch (Λ), the values of CL are also altered, as
plotted in Fig. 8 (a). It is also noticeable that the peak of CL is moderately
changed with the escalation of pitch (Λ) from 2.07 µm to 2.17 µm. To
this point, a slight shuffle is observed in the longer wavelength. When
the pitch (Λ) is prolonged from 2.07 µm to 2.17 µm the peak loss is
initiated to 100.90 dB/cm, 117.70 dB/cm as well as 122.17 dB/cm
respectively for analyte na = 1.38. Similarly, due to rising the pitch the
loss is achieved at 162.41 dB/cm, 172.30 dB/cm, 176.32 dB/cm
respectively, where RI at 1.39. Fig. 8(b), manifests the reliance of AS
with the pitch value. It is observed that changing the pitch (Λ) value has
a minor effect on SA . To maintain the critical trade-off between AS and
CL, the value of pitch (Λ) = 2.12 µm has been optimized.
Impact of open-channel radius
The impact of changing the open-channel radius (r) on overall
Fig. 7. (a) CL versus wavelength (λ) for different smaller circle diameter (d2),. Where d2 = 15 µm, 20 µm as well as 25 µm with analyte na from 1.38 to 1.39, (b)
Curves of wavelength (λ) versus AS with na = 1.38.
7
Results in Physics 46 (2023) 106266
performance is depicted in Fig. 9(a). It is also indicated that during the
increase of open channel radius (r) from 2.55 µm to 2.75 µm; the CL is
also rising sharply from 96.355 dB/cm to 149.524 dB/cm. However,
modifying the value of open-channel radius (r) has no visible impact on
sensing capabilities. There is a small change in AS of open-channel
radius variation which are plotted in Fig. 9(b). Moreover, the reached
AS values are 339.43, 380.06, and 346.65 RIU− 1 with the open-channel
radius of 2.55, 2.65, and 2.75 µm correspondingly.
Fabrication tolerance analysis
Fig. 10(a), illustrates the effect of the tg change on AS with ± 5 % and
± 10 % of the optimal design parameter’s value. The observation from
the figure finds that there is a small change in the sensitivity perfor­
mance for the deviation of tg. Similarly, it is also evident from Fig. 10(b),
that there is an impact of sensitivity to the variation of pitch (Λ) between
± 5 % and ± 10 % with optimized design value. Therefore, attention
should be given while using gold (Au) rings on the inside boundaries of
open-channel as well as for pitch value optimization.
Analysis of linearity of resonance wavelength and FOM
Fig. 11(a), defines the linear fitting of the resonance wavelength
(RW) with several values of RI with the other parameters, Λ = 2.12 µm,
tg = 0.04 µm, r = 2.65 µm, d1 = 40 µm as well as d2 = 20 µm. A linear fit
curve with R2 is shown as 0.9205, which corresponds to a linear
improvement. The quality of the sensor is dependent on the regression
line of the linear response. The equation for linear regression is
expressed in y = 3.8571x − 4.5852. Where, x points towards the RI
values and y indicates the resonance wavelength.
Fig. 11(b), depicts the proposed sensor’s FOM. Within the RI range of
1.33–1.39, the sensor provides a maximum FOM of 94.97 RIU− 1 and a
minimum FOM of 13.49 RIU− 1. The sensor has an acute spectrum, which
increases the FOM value at a higher RI. An efficient sensor requires a
high detection limit, as indicated by the FOM value.
Comparative studies of performance analysis
Table 2, provides details on the comparative analysis of SPR-based
PCF sensor performance with some recently published work on plas­
monic sensors. Different parameters are compared such as sensor
structure, RI range, WS, AS, the layer of metal, mode of polarization, and
N. Islam et al. Results in Physics 46 (2023) 106266

Fig. 8. (a) CL versus wavelength with a value of pitch between 2.07 µm and 2.17 µm with an interval of 0.05 µm and (b) variation of wavelength (λ) versus AS curves
of RI at na = 1.38.

Fig. 9. (a) CL versus wavelength for increasing the radius (r) of open-channel between 2.55 µm and 2.75 µm with RI = 1.38 and 1.39 (b) AS versus wavelength (λ)
variation the value of r with an analyte of RI = 1.38.

Fig. 10. (a) Calculation of fabrication tolerance with gold layer variation ring tg between ± 5 % and ± 10 % of the optimized parameters value at analyte na = 1.38
(b) change of pitch value from ± 5 % to ± 10 % of it is optimized value at analyte na = 1.38.

8
N. Islam et al. Results in Physics 46 (2023) 106266

Fig. 11. (a) Illustration of Linear fitting characteristics for resonant wavelength (RW) versus na; where na = 1.35 to 1.40 with an interval of 0.01, (b) FOM for analyte
RI of 1.33–1.39.

Table 2
Performance comparison among the proposed sensor and other present PCF-SPR sensors.
Reference Structure Style RI range Mode of Layer of Wave. Sens. of sensor Amp. sens. of sensor Res. of sensor
Polarization Metal (nm/ RIU) (RIU− 1) (RIU)
5
[27] Plasmonic gold based on both open-channels 1.33–1.38 y-pol Au 5000 396 2.0 × 10−
5
[37] Open-channels with plasmonic materials 1.33–1.39 y-pol Au, TiO2 6000 573.83 1.6 × 10−

[38] Two circular PCF with silver using external sensing 1.33–1.37 y-pol Ag 4200 300 2.38 × 10− 5
[39] Hexagonal lattice PCF structure coated plasmonic 1.33–1.37 y-pol Au 4000 478 2.5 × 10− 5
gold
[40] SPR biosensor in PCF hexagonal lattice in bi-metallic 1.32–1.34 – Ag, ZrN 5400 – –
configuration Ag/ZrN

6
[41] Open channels with two ring 1.23–1.29 – Au 5500 – 7.69 × 10−

5
[42] PCF dual-polarized spiral with plasmonic gold 1.33–1.38 y-pol Au 4600 371.5 2.17 × 10−
[43] Microstructured double-core fiber optic with 1.44–1.46 x-pol Au 4900 – –
plasmonic gold
[44] PCF-SPR with Birefringent 1–1.43 x-pol Au 6300 – –
5
This proposed Gold coated based two open-channels SPR-PCF 1.33–1.39 y-pol Au 7000 593.61 1.43 £ 10−
Study

resolution (R), etc. It is noted that the proposed sensor is better than the
recently reported high sensitivity sensor.
Testbed setup consideration
The experiment setup is configured for sensing applications as indi­
cated in Fig. 12. A high-speed light source first generates the incident
light. In this configuration, “SuperKcompact, NKTPhotonicsTM” can be
utilized as a light source [45]. Next, the light is transmitted through a
polarizer coupled with a polarization controller. The broadband light is
converted into linear polarized light through the polarization controller.
A single mode fiber carries the polarization controller output through
the sensor (SMF-28). Then the signal interacts with the sensing medium.
This signal is transmitted to an optical spectrum analyzer (OSA) through
another SMF. The “AQ6370C, Yokokawa™ ” can be used as OSA due to
its high dynamic range [45].
The approach called splicing is as simple as possible to connect the
sensor with SMF-28 in an easy way. The filament fusion method is
applied for splicing with the “Vytran FFS-2000′′ splicer [46]. In several
studies [47,48] with high-performance SMF-PCF couplers have been
reported and can also be practiced for the purposes of the PCF-SPR
sensor. Thus, the proposed PCF-SPR sensor should be plugged with
SMF for high coupling efficiency. Fig. 12 also shows that an analyte
channel is inserted into an appropriate place to allow inlet and outlet of
the analyte. The analyte entered the channel while using a pumper such
as “LSP01_1A, LongerPump™” [45]. The outlet of the channel is linked
to waste reservoir to store the utilized analyte. The light spectrum is
measured using the OSA, which is connected to a PC. The data obtained
from the OSA are analyzed using the computer.
Applying the wavelength interrogation technique, the detection
performance is calculated by observing a resonant wavelength differ­
ence. Additionally, the change in resonance intensity is the key indicator
for measuring detection efficiency in intensity-based analysis.
Conclusions
The study offered two open-channels PCF-SPR sensor that is sub­
jected to a numerical investigation to perceive the unknown analyte.
The reliance on changes in detection performance in all design param­
eters is also taken into account, for instance pitch, various sizes of air-
holes diameter, the thickness of gold, open-channels radius, etc. The
work also exposes the uppermost WS of 7000 nm/RIU and AS of 593.61
RIU− 1 within RI at 1.39. Additionally, the sensor has the foremost res­
olution of 1.43 × 10− 5 RIU, which is compatible with the sensor’s ability
to realize a minimum variation in the analyte RI. It would also be
worthwhile to assess and build the detector in a real-case scenario. With

9
N. Islam et al.
Fig. 12. Typical testbed setup consideration with proposed sensor for sensing applications.
it is optimum detection properties, the sensor could become accustomed
to bio-sensing applications.
Declaration of Competing Interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial
interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence
the work reported in this paper.
Data availability
Data will be made available on request.
Acknowledgement
The work is supported by Information and Communication Tech­
nology (ICT) Division of Ministry of Posts, Telecommunications and
Information Technology, Dhaka, Bangladesh.
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