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System and method for brewster angle straddle interferometry

  • US 7,551,294 B2
  • Filed: 09/18/2006
  • Issued: 06/23/2009
  • Est. Priority Date: 09/16/2005
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
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1. A sensor system for sensing at least one target in a medium, the system comprising:

  • a receptor for the at least one target, the receptor comprising a silicon substrate and a translucent native oxide coating on the substrate, the coating having front and back surfaces and one or more adsorbates attached to the front surface of the coating, said one or more adsorbates being capable of recognizing the at least one target;

    a source of p-polarized light positioned to direct at least a portion of the p-polarized light from the source toward the coating on the receptor in a manner effective to result in a condition of near perfect interference where reflectivity is less than 10

    3
    in the absence of a target bound to the one or more adsorbates on the receptor, wherein the incident angle for one of the substrate/coating interface and the medium/coating interface is greater than its Brewster angle and the incident angle for the other interface is less than its Brewster angle; and

    a detector positioned to measure the light reflected from the front and back surfaces of the coating, the detector identifying presence of at least one target based on a change in the measured reflected light.

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