Figure of Merit Analysis of LRSPR Sensor using Graphene in NIR Regime

Abstract

In this work, LRSPR sensor for detection of macro biomolecules in near infrared range is presented. Using a buffer layer of dielectric with low refractive index between the prism and metal, a long-range surface plasmon resonance (LRSPR) biosensor that exhibits large detection accuracy as well as high figure of merit is proposed. Two-dimensional (2D) material graphene is used to attach biomolecules through carbon-carbon pi-stacking forces. First, the theoretical simulations for optimizing the thicknesses of dielectric buffer layer (Cytop) and gold (Au) metal layer has been carried out. Then, performance parameters DA and FOM were analyzed. The highest FOM of 847.4 RIU−1 is accomplished for the proposed LRSPR sensor with the use of 1500nm thickness of Cytop. We believe that the proposed LRSPR sensor with high DA and FOM could provide potential applications in medical and biosensing field.