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Plasmonics

We are interested in understanding and exploiting plasmonic affects to develop chemical sensors. The group is the first to develop a truly functional multimode fiber-optic surface plasmon resonance sensor for in situ applications and midinfrared surface plasmon resonance platform that is fully integrated into the sample compartment of an FT IR.

Current research directions involve developing methods for large molecules and small molecule detection in complex matrices. Novel surface coatings, such as disodium salt linkers and environmentally responsive polymers , are incorporated with the SPR sensors to increase sensitivity and selectivity. The "gap mode" between two plasmonic structures is also being investigated as a method to enhance sensitivity of analyses.

 

Current Research

Our research interest is the development of in-situ chemical sensors for environmental, biomedical, and industrial process monitoring. Specifically, the research group has been concentrating on advancement of fiber optic surface plasmon resonance (SPR) Raman, and fluorescence sensors. In developing these sensors we meld instrumental design with advanced data analysis (Chemometrics) methods to achieve optimal instrumental performance. This research is driven by the realization that many measurement challenges – particularly problems involving analyte selectivity and sensitivity – are not best addressed by solely applying chemistry or physics solutions. These ‘physical’ solutions are often time, labor, and capital expensive. Instead, instrumental selectivity and sensitivity (and robustness) can often be enhanced by incorporating mathematical and statistical analysis of the collected data into the instrumental design.

Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry University of Delaware Newark, DE 19716
Phone: 302-831-2561 | Fax: 302-831-6335 | Lab: 302-831-2625 | Email: kbooksh@udel.edu