Refractive Index-Based Optimized Ternary Photonic Crystal Biosensor for Ultra Precise Detection of Cancer Cells

Abstract

Diagnosing cancer as one of the main causes of death in the world in its early stages can be very effective in its treatment. Photonic crystal-based biosensors are optical sensors that have recently attracted attention due to their many advantages. In this paper, a ternary photonic crystal-based biosensor is designed and investigated considering the practical limitations. The sensing mechanism of the cancer sensor in the proposed structure is based on the change in the analyte’s refractive index, which leads to a change in the transmission spectrum. Incident light with transverse electric polarization was used. The sensor’s performance was checked by changing the number of periods and the angle of the incident light. The optimal values ​​were selected to have the maximum efficiency of the sensor. Finally, for this sensor, sensitivity equal to 692.8 nm ⁄RIU, full width at half maximum equal to 0.271 nm, figure of merit equal to 2561.5 RIU− 1, and quality factor more than 5870 were obtained, which showed a significant improvement compared to similar works. This work establishes a benchmark for ternary photonic crystal-based biosensors, offering a robust, cost-effective, and precise solution for cancer detection and potential applications in broader diagnostic fields.