Optical waveguide double-ring sensor using intensity interrogation with a low-cost broadband source

A highly sensitive optical waveguide sensor based on simple intensity interrogation with a broadband light source is proposed and investigated. It consists of two cascaded microring resonators with the same or slightly different free spectral ranges. The variation of the refractive index of the analyte sample results in a large shift in the envelope function of the transmission peaks of the sensor, and, consequently, a large change in the transmitted power. The low-cost sensing scheme can achieve an ultrahigh sensitivity of 2 x 10(4) dB/RIU. Experimental results on the intensity interrogated double-ring sensor using a broadband source are presented, demonstrating its operation principle and potential for low-cost practical applications. (C) 2011 Optical Society of America