A theoretical study of a nano-opto-mechanical sensor using a photonic crystal-cantilever cavity
In this simulation study, integration of a nanocantilever inside a two-dimensional (2D) photonic crystal (PC) cavity resulted in a unique photonic crystal-cantilever cavity (PC3), where the cantilever served as a tunable mechanical defect of the PC slab. Strong nano-opto-mechanical interactions between the cantilever and the defect-mode field inside the PC3 gave rise to a high sensitivity of the resonance wavelength to surface stress-induced cantilever deflection. Mechanical and optical responses of the PC3 to surface stress changes on the cantilever surface were studied by using a finite-element method (FEM) and a finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method, respectively. Theoretical analysis revealed that the devised PC3 sensor could resolve a conservative minimum surface stress at the level of ~0.8 mN m−1, representing state-of-the-art cantilever sensor performance. Also, the PC3 sensor design used an ultracompact structure with an on-chip optical length of only several microns, while a conventional reflected laser beam detection scheme requires a ~1 m long free-space optical path.
- Research Organization:
- Ames Lab., Ames, IA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC)
- DOE Contract Number:
- DE-AC02-07CH11358
- OSTI ID:
- 1052065
- Report Number(s):
- IS-J 7756
- Journal Information:
- Journal of Optics, Vol. 14, Issue 7
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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