Theoretical and experimental characterization of a salinity and temperature sensor employing optical fiber surface plasmon resonance (SPR)

A reflective seawater salinity and temperature sensor based on surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect with multimode single-mode (MS) fiber structure has been proposed and demonstrated. Firstly, the sensing mechanism of the optical fiber SPR sensor was analyzed. Next, the influence of the type of metal, the thickness of the metal film, and the length of sensing area upon the SPR spectrum were simulated and compared. Based on these measurements, a reflective and highly-sensitive refractive index sensor was fabricated and experimentally demonstrated. Finally, a dual-parameter SPR sensor for the simultaneous measurement of seawater salinity and temperature was proposed by coating polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) on half of the sensor as a temperature sensitive material, whose sensitivities were demonstrated to be 0.31 nm/‰ and -2.02 nm/°C, respectively. The proposed sensor not only resolves the cross-sensitivity problem between salinity and temperature, but also provides a simple structure with low cost and high sensitivity.