Simulations of refractive index variation in a multimode interference coupler: Application to gas sensing

An optical sensor based on multimode interference couplers structures has been studied. We have introduced the optical parameters of materials used in existing optical integrated circuits and a sensitive material characterised in previous studies. The variation of optical properties such as the refractive index of the covering sensitive material leads to a modification of waveguiding conditions in the multimode interference coupler. A gas sensor can be developed by measuring the variation of light intensity at the output of the multimode interference coupler structure under gas exposure. Simulations have been performed in order to optimise the output light intensity variations to increase sensitivity. We have shown that these structures are more sensitive than Mach-Zehnder interferometers, and that the relation between dimensions and sensitivity of the multimode interference coupler is not trivial.