Ci a ion: Pé ez-Ocón, F. Special Issue
on Op ical Senso s and Gauges Based
on Plasmonic Resonance. Appl. Sci.
2022,12, 7564. h ps://doi.o g/
10.3390/app12157564
Recei ed: 22 July 2022
Accep ed: 25 July 2022
Published: 27 July 2022
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applied
sciences
Edi o ial
Special Issue on Op ical Senso s and Gauges Based on
Plasmonic Resonance
F ancisco Pé ez-Ocón
Op ics Depa men , Uni e si y o G anada, 18071 G anada, Spain; pe ez@ug .es
A su ace plasmon is a plasmon ha p opaga es h ough a su ace; i.e., i is an elec o-
magne ic wa e om he in e ac ion o an elec omagne ic wa e wi h he oscilla ions o ee
elec ons on he su ace o a me al, which p opaga es a he sepa a ion in e ace o a me al
(D ude model) [1].
The e a e wo ypes o plasmons, he pola i on su ace plasmon ha has he o m
o an elec omagne ic wa e, which p opaga es h ough he in e ace o a me al-dielec ic
su ace [
2
], and he localized pola i on su ace plasmon, which is comp ised o localized
elec on oscilla ions in me allic nanopa icles ha a e ound inside a dielec ic [3].
F om he Lycu gus Cup in 272-337 AD [
4
], h ough he wonde ul s ained glass o
Romanesque and Go hic chu ches and ca hed als [
5
] o he mos mode n senso s, plas-
mons ha e always been p esen in he li e o human beings, al hough we did no know
abou hem.
The i s o ob ain he ma hema ical exp ession o a plasmon was Gus a Mie in
1908 [
6
]. Humani y had o wai almos 70 yea s un il wo k wi h pa icles began in he
1980s, esul ing in one o he i s a icles on plasmonic senso s o be published in he
wo ld [
7
]. I has been a ha d ask; physicis s and enginee s ha e had o wo k oge he , i s
o o malize he equa ions o plasmons and e anescen wa es a dielec ic-me al in e aces
and second o build s uc u es ha would make i possible o ob ain hese plasmons. La e ,
hese scien is s, wo king oge he wi h biologis s, medical doc o s, chemis s, e c. pa ed
he way o he c ea ion o plasmonic senso s g adually designed o measu e all kinds o
a iables, no jus physical ones. The las s ep has been he design and manu ac u e o new
ma e ials, me al alloys, o he doping o ma e ials o eplace me als and dielec ics and
achie e be e esolu ions and sensi i i ies [8].
Conside ing he s uc u e o he senso , he only con igu a ions a e O o (p ism-me al-
dielec ic) [
9
] and K e schmann (p ism-dielec ic-me al) [
10
]. In e ms o senso design,
he e a e in ensi y, wa eleng h, and angle in e oga ion senso s. Al hough hey may all
ha e he same sensi i i y and esolu ion, senso s based on in ensi y in e oga ion ha e he
ad an age o no ha ing mo ing pa s, so he e is no mechanical wea and ea , and hey
will ha e a long use ul li e [11].
Do plasmonic senso s eally measu e he amoun o subs ance in a ce ain medium,
o example, do hey measu e salini y, suc ose concen a ion, he p esence o CO, e c.? The
answe is no. These senso s measu e di e ences in he e ac i e index o he medium,
and om he e, we can ela e, o example, he concen a ion o suc ose in a medium o
he e ac i e index. Measu ing he e ac i e index (o changes in e ac i e indices) is
wha makes hem be e , mo e gene al and uni e sal, since hey do no analyze a speci ic
subs ance bu a he a p ope y.
They a e nanopho onic senso s, so hei iny size allows hem o be in eg a ed wi h
mo e senso s o build an a ay and be able o de ec di e en subs ances, ma e ials, e c.
wi hou mo e han mul iplexing in ime o space he inpu and ou pu op ical powe [
12
] o
in eg a ing hem in o mo e complex senso s capable o measu ing mo e han one pa ame e
a he same ime [
13
]. The applica ions o hese senso s a e no only in he ield o physics;
hey a e also being used e y success ully in chemis y, biology, medicine, e c. In he la e
Appl. Sci. 2022,12, 7564. h ps://doi.o g/10.3390/app12157564 h ps://www.mdpi.com/jou nal/applsci
Appl. Sci. 2022,12, 7564 2 o 3
case, as hey a e made o biocompa ible ma e ials, hey can be in oduced in o he pa ien ’s
body (i necessa y) wi hou pu ing humans (o animals) a isk.
This Special Issue aims o collec and p esen cu ing-edge esea ch on all plasmonic
senso echnologies o con ibu e o he esea ch, design, de elopmen , and applica ions
wi h a icles ha demons a e he mos ecen ad ances in plasmonic senso s wi h new
scien i ic knowledge, designs, and hei p ac ical applica ions.
A o al o se en pape s in a ious ields o SPR senso s a e p esen ed in his Special Issue.
In he a icle by Ca doso M.P. e al. [
14
] a Tunable plasmonic esonance senso using a
me ama e ial ilm on a D-shaped pho onic c ys al ibe o e ac i e index measu emen s
is p oposed. These me a-ma e ials a e sub-wa eleng h cells o me allic nano ods a anged
in a dielec ic backg ound, and exhibi bulk p ope ies ha a e use ul o con olling and
manipula ing su ace plasmon esonances.
Pé ez-Ocón e al. [
11
] p esen he design o wo senso s, one o he con inuous
measu emen o suc ose concen a ion wi h sensi i i ies o 11.9–5.7 RIU
−1
and esolu ions
o he o de o 10
−4
RIU; his senso is capable o measu ing suc ose concen a ions o
up o 78 BRIX, ha no plasmonic senso has so a been capable o measu ing. The o he
senso [
15
] measu es CO
2
concen a ions wi h a esolu ion o 10
−5
RIU. This new senso ,
due o i s sensi i i y and esolu ion, along wi h i s diminu i e size, could be in eg a ed
in o an elec onic nose and used on spacec a , he In e na ional Space S a ion, o e en
comme cial ligh s. Bo h senso s ha e some o he highes sensi i i ies and esolu ions o
da e in his ype o plasmonic senso .
An impo an ac abou SPR senso s is how empe a u e a ec s he measu emen s.
Tempe a u e changes he wa eleng h a which su ace plasmon esonance occu s. On he
o he hand, i is e iden ha an inc ease o dec ease in empe a u e a ec s he p opaga ion
o adia ion in op ical ibe s. The s udy by Su. N e al. [
16
] shows a no el dual wa eleng h
me hod o e alua e he e ec o empe a u e on ibe op ic SPR senso s in eal ime.
As an example o a senso used in medicine, we ha e he senso by Sankiewicz,
A. e al. [
17
]. These esea che s ha e applied plasmon biosenso s based on su ace plasmon
esonance imaging (SPRi) o de ec he 20S p o easome p o ein and ubiqui in ca boxy-
e minal hyd olase L1 (UCH-L1) in he blood se um and u ine o pa ien s wi h TCC (na ow
cell ca cinoma) o ansi ion and o be able o make an ea ly diagnosis o bladde cance .
The con amina ion o phenolic compounds in he na u al en i onmen is a oxic e-
sponse ha induces se e e impac on plan s, animals, and human heal h. Ly, N.H. e al. [
18
]
ha e made an upda ed e iew o he ecen de elopmen s and ends o new plasmon eso-
nance nanoma e ials, which a e assis ed by a ious op ical senso s, including colo ime y,
luo escence, localized su ace plasmon esonance (LSPR), and plasmon-enhanced Raman
spec oscopy. These ad anced and powe ul analy ical ools exhibi po en ial applica ion
o ul a-high sensi i i y, selec i i y, and apid de ec ion o phenol and i s de i a i es.
The a icle by Rod igues e al. [
19
] p esen s an exhaus i e e iew o gas senso s based
on he localized su ace plasmon esonance (LSPR) phenomenon, including LSPR heo y,
he syn hesis o nanopa icle-embedded oxide hin ilms, and s a egies o imp o e he
sensi i i y o hese op ical senso s, suppo ed by simula ions o elec omagne ic p ope ies.
The submission o his Special Issue is now closed, bu he SPR senso s a e s ill cu en ,
esea ch does no s op and echnology akes ad an age o all he scien i ic ad ances on new
ma e ials and plasmons o ace he new challenges ha science, echnology and socie y,
demand. We a e con inuing o wo k on his.
Funding: This esea ch ecei ed no ex e nal unding.
Acknowledgmen s:
Thanks o all he au ho s and pee e iewe s o hei aluable con ibu ions o
his Special Issue ‘Op ical senso s and gauges based on plasmonic esonance’. I would also like o
exp ess my g a i ude o all he s a and people in ol ed in his Special Issue.
Con lic s o In e es : The au ho decla es no con lic o in e es .
Appl. Sci. 2022,12, 7564 3 o 3
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