PHODYE is a multidisciplinary project that aims to develop a new sensing technology based on the integration of dye thin films with photonic structures. The developed devices should yield a distinct optical response according to changes in the environment which can be easily measured by a chip or recognized directly by the human eye. The dye thin films will be prepared by a new plasma polymerization procedure that is fully compatible with the integrated optoelectronic technology. The dye molecules in the films react to changes in the concentration of certain gases and/or in temperature or UV radiation by a change of their absorption/fluorescence properties. A key feature of the project is to achieve an effective optical coupling between the photonic structures and the film fluorescence/absorption response, so that changes in this latter can be transformed into proportional photonic signals or visible colour shifts.

A first technological objective of PHODYE is the integration of more than one sensing element into a chip based on ring resonators that would be capable of monitoring simultaneously various gases/physical parameters. A second objective is the construction of recognition chips that upon light excitation have a predetermined fluorescence response which changes depending on a given physical or chemical parameter.

As the optical structures have dimensions of the order of 100nm's, the sensor response should be very fast. Devices based on large photonic resonant structures can be easily integrated into measurement devices, communication networks etc. Their low cost and their compatibility to dangerous environments make them a unique solution for a wide range of applications.

PHODYE is intended by a consortium that integrates four research centres and three SME's companies that cover all the scientific-technological chain from the materials to the final devices. Manufacturing, packaging and testing and validation are also afforded by the partners.