Optical Fibre Micro/Nano Tips as Fluorescence-Based Sensors and Interrogation Probes

Year: 2020

Authors: Berneschi Simone; Barucci; Andrea; Baldini Francesco; Cosi Franco; Quercioli Franco; Pelli Stefano; Righini Giancarlo C.; Tiribilli Bruno; Tombelli Sara; Trono Cosimo; Giannetti Ambra

Autors Affiliation: Institute of Applied Physics “”Nello Carrara””, IFAC-CNR; via Madonna del Piano 10, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino (FI), Italy National Institute of Optics, INO-CNR, Largo Fermi 6, 50125 Firenze, Italy Institute for Complex Sistems, ISC-CNR, Via Madonna del Piano 10, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino (FI), Italy

Abstract: Optical fibre micro/nano tips (OFTs), defined here as tapered fibres with a waist diameter ranging from a few microns to tens of nanometres and different tip angles (i.e., from tens of degrees to fractions of degrees), represent extremely versatile tools that have attracted growing interest during these last decades in many areas of photonics. The field of applications can range from physical and chemical/biochemical sensing—also at the intracellular levels—to the development of near-field probes for microscope imaging (i.e., scanning near-field optical microscopy (SNOM)) and optical interrogation systems, up to optical devices for trapping and manipulating microparticles (i.e., optical tweezers). All these applications rely on the ability to fabricate OFTs, tailoring some of their features according to the requirements determined by the specific application. In this review, starting from a short overview of the main fabrication methods used for the realisation of these optical micro/nano structures, the focus will be concentrated on some of their intriguing applications such as the development of label-based chemical/biochemical sensors and the implementation of SNOM probes for interrogating optical devices, including whispering gallery mode microcavities.

Journal/Review: OPTICS

Volume: 1 (2)      Pages from: 213  to: 242

KeyWords: optical fibre micro/nano tip (OFT), chemical etching, mechanical polishing, thermal pulling, focused ion beam (FIB), scanning near-field optical microscopy (SNOM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), whispering gallery mode resonators (WGMRs), fluorescence-based chemical/biochemical sensors, intracellular sensing
DOI: 10.3390/opt1020017