Detection of isoprene traces in exhaled breath by using photonic crystals as a biomarker for chronic liver fibrosis disease

Abstract

Detection of blood-carried volatile organic compounds (VOCs) existing in the exhaled breath of human is an attractive research point for noninvasive diagnosis of diseases. In this research, we introduce a novel application of photonic crystals (PCs) for the detection of isoprene traces in the exhaled breath as a biomarker for liver fibrosis. This idea is introduced for the first time according to the best of our knowledge. The proposed sensor structure is a one-dimensional (1D) PC constructed from a multilayer stack of two dielectric materials covered with an air cavity layer filled with the dry exhaled breath (DEB) and a thin metallic layer of Au is attached on the top surface. Hence, the proposed sensor is configured as, [prism/Au/air cavity/(GaN/SiO2)10]. The transfer matrix method and the Drude model are adopted to calculate the numerical simulations and reflection spectra of the design. The essential key for sensing isoprene levels is the resonant optical Tamm plasmon (TP) states within the photonic bandgap. The obtained numerical results are promising such as high sensitivity (S) of 0.321 nm/ppm or 278720 nm/RIU. This technique can be reducing the risk of infection during the taking of blood samples by syringe. Also, it can prevent the pain of patients. Finally, this work opens the door for the detection of many diseases by analyzing the breaths of patients based on photonic crystals.

One-Dimensional Phononic Crystals: A Simplified Platform for Effective Detection of Heavy Metals in Water with High Sensitivity

“…When the concentrations increased from 10,000 to 90,000 ppm, the values of the detection limit decreased from 1213.33 to 2542.5. These values are relatively acceptable, which characterizes the proposed sensor in this study from previously designed liquid sensors of a comparable type (1D) and dimensions [ 43 , 44 ].…”

“…This indicates that all the resonant peaks are sharp, which increased the frequency resolution of the proposed sensor. In comparison to other sensors, the numerical findings investigated in Figure 11 indicated some special features of the designed sensor compared to its counterparts in 1D PnC designs [ 42 , 43 ]. The quality factor of the proposed design sensor may rise to around 1528.76, which is relatively high compared to the results explored in previous 1D PnC sensors [ 42 , 43 ].…”

“…Finally, another performance parameter (i.e., the damping rate) was also considered. The damping, which defines how the acoustic waves in the designed PnCs decay following a disturbance across the structure, determines the sharpness of the resonance-transmitted peaks [ 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 ]: …”

“…Figure 12 shows the relationship between different concentrations and the detection limit of the cadmium bromide liquid sensor. The limit of detection (LOD) has a lower concentration of an analyte in a sample, which can be determined with a given probability [ 43 , 44 ]. When the concentrations increased from 10,000 to 90,000 ppm, the values of the detection limit decreased from 1213.33 to 2542.5.…”

A doped-polymer based porous silicon photonic crystal sensor for the detection of gamma-ray radiation

“…8 Photonic Crystals (PhCs) are articial inhomogeneous structures that can be designed or fabricated in one-dimension (1D), two-dimension (2D), or three-dimension (3D) to control and manipulate light's propagation within a specic range of frequencies called the photonic band gap(PBG). [17][18][19] The difference in refractive indices between the constituent materials leads to the generation of this PBG. The creation of local resonance modes by creating a cavity or (defect) within the periodic structure of PhCs is utilized in sensor applications.…”