πFBG resonator used as a transducer for trace gas photothermal detection.

We present an optical transduction method adapted to the detection of low frequency thermal perturbations and implemented for photothermal trace gas detection. The transducer is a π-phase shifted fiber Bragg grating, stabilized and interrogated by the Pound-Drever-Hall method. The principle of detection is based on the frequency shift of the narrow optical resonance, induced by the temperature variations. In temperature measurement mode, the stabilization leads to an estimated limit of detection of 1 µK at room temperature and at a frequency of 40 Hz. When the fiber transducer is placed in a gas cell, CO2 is detected by photothermal spectroscopy with a limit of detection of 3 ppm/H z. This novel method, based on a single fiber, offers robustness, stabilized operation and remote detection capability.

An all-Optical Photoacoustic Sensor for the Detection of Trace Gas.

A highly sensitive Fabry-Perot based transduction method is proposed as an all-optical alternative for the detection of trace gas by the photoacoustic spectroscopy technique. A lumped element model is firstly devised to help design the whole system and is successfully compared to finite element method simulations. The fabricated Fabry-Perot microphone consists in a hinged cantilever based diaphragm, processed by laser cutting, and directly assembled at the tip of an optical fiber. We find a high acoustic sensitivity of 630 mV/Pa and a state-of-the-art noise equivalent pressure, as low as ~   2   µ Pa / Hz at resonance. For photoacoustic trace gas detection, the Fabry-Perot microphone is further embedded in a cylindrical multipass cell and shows an ultimate detection limit of 15 ppb of NO in nitrogen. The proposed optical trace gas sensor offers the advantages of high sensitivity and easy assembling, as well as the possibility of remote detection.

High-efficiency and broadband photonic polarization rotator based on multilevel shape optimization.

We report on a novel photonic polarization rotator design obtained by multilevel shape optimization. The numerical method consists of a topological optimization scheme, improving iteratively the efficiency of the component by modifying its shape on two discrete levels along the etching direction. We numerically show that, compared to state-of-the-art single-level shape optimization, the performances can be drastically improved for a given device length. Next, the polarization conversion efficiency can be further improved up to a computed value of 98.5% with less than 0.35 dB insertion losses on a 100 nm bandwidth for a 6 µm×1 µm footprint.

Robust silicon-on-insulator adiabatic splitter optimized by metamodeling.

A robust integrated power splitter based on a silicon-on-insulator adiabatic coupler configuration is demonstrated. The power separation is achieved by a slow and simultaneous change of phase and coupling constants. The geometrical parameters of the device are determined thanks to a metamodel-based iterative optimization strategy. Solving the multiple parameter problem together with a realistic bandwidth constraint provides a clear improvement of the power splitting stability. The robustness is confirmed experimentally on a single device and at the wafer scale.

Current approaches to model extracellular electrical neural microstimulation.

Nowadays, high-density microelectrode arrays provide unprecedented possibilities to precisely activate spatially well-controlled central nervous system (CNS) areas. However, this requires optimizing stimulating devices, which in turn requires a good understanding of the effects of microstimulation on cells and tissues. In this context, modeling approaches provide flexible ways to predict the outcome of electrical stimulation in terms of CNS activation. In this paper, we present state-of-the-art modeling methods with sufficient details to allow the reader to rapidly build numerical models of neuronal extracellular microstimulation. These include (1) the computation of the electrical potential field created by the stimulation in the tissue, and (2) the response of a target neuron to this field. Two main approaches are described: First we describe the classical hybrid approach that combines the finite element modeling of the potential field with the calculation of the neuron's response in a cable equation framework (compartmentalized neuron models). Then, we present a "whole finite element" approach allowing the simultaneous calculation of the extracellular and intracellular potentials, by representing the neuronal membrane with a thin-film approximation. This approach was previously introduced in the frame of neural recording, but has never been implemented to determine the effect of extracellular stimulation on the neural response at a sub-compartment level. Here, we show on an example that the latter modeling scheme can reveal important sub-compartment behavior of the neural membrane that cannot be resolved using the hybrid approach. The goal of this paper is also to describe in detail the practical implementation of these methods to allow the reader to easily build new models using standard software packages. These modeling paradigms, depending on the situation, should help build more efficient high-density neural prostheses for CNS rehabilitation.

Challenges in the design and fabrication of a lab-on-a-chip photoacoustic gas sensor.

The favorable downscaling behavior of photoacoustic spectroscopy has provoked in recent years a growing interest in the miniaturization of photoacoustic sensors. The individual components of the sensor, namely widely tunable quantum cascade lasers, low loss mid infrared (mid-IR) waveguides, and efficient microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) microphones are becoming available in complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) compatible technologies. This paves the way for the joint processes of miniaturization and full integration. Recently, a prototype microsensor has been designed by the means of a specifically designed coupled optical-acoustic model. This paper discusses the new, or more intense, challenges faced if downscaling is continued. The first limitation in miniaturization is physical: the light source modulation, which matches the increasing cell acoustic resonance frequency, must be kept much slower than the collisional relaxation process. Secondly, from the acoustic modeling point of view, one faces the limit of validity of the continuum hypothesis. Namely, at some point, velocity slip and temperature jump boundary conditions must be used, instead of the continuous boundary conditions, which are valid at the macro-scale. Finally, on the technological side, solutions exist to realize a complete lab-on-a-chip, even if it remains a demanding integration problem.

Multilevel fast multipole method based on a potential formulation for 3D electromagnetic scattering problems.

A combination of the multilevel fast multipole method (MLFMM) and boundary element method (BEM) can solve large scale photonics problems of arbitrary geometry. Here, MLFMM-BEM algorithm based on a scalar and vector potential formulation, instead of the more conventional electric and magnetic field formulations, is described. The method can deal with multiple lossy or lossless dielectric objects of arbitrary geometry, be they nested, in contact, or dispersed. Several examples are used to demonstrate that this method is able to efficiently handle 3D photonic scatterers involving large numbers of unknowns. Absorption, scattering, and extinction efficiencies of gold nanoparticle spheres, calculated by the MLFMM, are compared with Mie's theory. MLFMM calculations of the bistatic radar cross section (RCS) of a gold sphere near the plasmon resonance and of a silica coated gold sphere are also compared with Mie theory predictions. Finally, the bistatic RCS of a nanoparticle gold-silver heterodimer calculated with MLFMM is compared with unmodified BEM calculations.

A new 3-D finite-element model based on thin-film approximation for microelectrode array recording of extracellular action potential.

A transient finite-element model has been developed to simulate an extracellular action potential recording in a tissue slice by a planar microelectrode array. The thin-film approximation of the active neuron membrane allows the simulation within single finite-element software of the intracellular and extracellular potential fields. In comparison with a compartmental neuron model, it is shown that the thin-film approximation-based model is able to properly represent the neuron bioelectrical behavior in terms of transmembrane current and potential. Moreover, the model is able to simulate extracellular action potential recordings with properties similar to those observed in biological experiments. It is demonstrated that an ideal measurement system model can be used to represent the recording microelectrode, provided that the electronic recording system adapts to the electrode-tissue interface impedance. By comparing it with a point source approximated neuron, it is also shown that the neuron three-dimensional volume should be taken into account to simulate the extracellular action potential recording. Finally, the influence of the electrode size on the signal amplitude is evaluated. This parameter, together with the microelectrode noise, should be taken into account in order to optimize future microelectrode designs in terms of the signal-to-noise ratio.