An ammonia sensor based on Lossy Mode Resonances on a tapered optical fibre coated with porphyrin-incorporated titanium dioxide

The development of a highly sensitive ammonia sensor is described. The sensor is formed by deposition of a nanoscale coating of titanium dioxide, containing a porphyrin as a functional material, onto a tapered optical fibre. The titanium dioxide coating allows coupling of light from the fundamental core mode to a lossy mode supported by the coating, thus creating a Lossy Mode Resonance (LMR) in the transmission spectrum. A change in the refractive index of the coating caused by the interaction of the porphyrin with ammonia causes a change in the centre wavelength of the LMR, allowing concentrations of ammonia in water as low as 0.1 ppm to be detected, with a response time of less than 30 s.