OPTICAL SENSORS INCLUDING SURFACE MODIFIED PHASE-CHANGE MATERIALS FOR DETECTION OF CHEMICAL, BIOLOGICAL AND EXPLOSIVE COMPOUNDS

摘要

A sensor device includes an optical limiting structure including a metal layerwithat least one metal particle having a size no greater than about 1500nanometers, and aphase-change material layer disposed adjacent at least a portion of the metallayer, thephase-change material layer including a phase-change material, and a dendritic-metallayer disposed over at least a portion of the phase-change material layer ofthe opticallimiting structure, the dendritic-metal layer including an organic compoundincludingbranching chain amino acid groups attached to a metal structure. The opticallimitingstructure is configured to transition from a first optical state to a secondoptical state whenthe phase-change material is heated above a critical temperature, withtransmittance oflight at a predetermined wavelength through the optical limiting structurebeing lower atthe second optical state of the optical limiting structure in relation to thefirst optical stateof the optical limiting structure.