Analytical Gas Sensing in the Terahertz Spectral Range

Exploiting the terahertz (THz) part of the electromagnetic spectrum is attracting attention in various scientific and applied disciplines worldwide. THz technology has also revealed its potential as an effective tool for gas analysis in astronomy, biomedicine and chemical analysis. Recently, it has also become important in environmental applications for monitoring hazardous and toxic gases in the atmosphere. This paper gives an overview of THz gas detection analytical methods for environmental and biomedical applications, starting with a brief introduction to THz technology and an explanation of the interaction of THz radiation with gaseous species and the atmosphere. The review focuses on several gaseous species and groups of air pollutants that have been or can be analysed by THz spectrometry. The review concludes that different but complementary THz detection methods allow unique detection, identification and quantification of gaseous and particulate air pollutants with high selectivity, specificity and sensitivity. THz detection methods also allow further technological improvements and open new application possibilities.

Terahertz imaging for non-invasive classification of healthy and cimiciato-infected hazelnuts

The development of new non-invasive approaches able to recognize defective food is currently a lively field of research. In particular, a simple and non-destructive method able to recognize defective hazelnuts, such as cimiciato-infected ones, in real-time is still missing. This study has been designed to detect the presence of such damaged hazelnuts. To this aim, a measurement setup based on terahertz (THz) radiation has been developed. Images of a sample of 150 hazelnuts have been acquired in the low THz range by a compact and portable active imaging system equipped with a 0.14 THz source and identified as Healthy Hazelnuts (HH) or Cimiciato Hazelnut (CH) after visual inspection. All images have been analyzed to find the average transmission of the THz radiation within the sample area. The differences in the distribution of the two populations have been used to set up a classification scheme aimed at the discrimination between healthy and injured samples. The performance of the classification scheme has been assessed through the use of the confusion matrix on 50 samples. The False Positive Rate (FPR) and True Negative Rate (TNR) are 0% and 100%, respectively. On the other hand, the True Positive Rate (TPR) and False Negative Rate (FNR) are 75% and 25%, respectively. These results are relevant from the perspective of the development of a simple, automatic, real-time method for the discrimination of cimiciato-infected hazelnuts in the processing industry.

Volatilome Analysis and Evolution in the Headspace of Packed Refrigerated Fish

Fresh fish is a perishable food in which chemical (namely oxidation) and microbiological degradation result in undesirable odor. Non-processed fish (i.e., raw fish) is increasingly commercialized in packaging systems which are convenient for its retailing and/or which can promote an extension of its shelf-life. Compared to fish sent to its retail unpackaged, fish packaging results in a modification of the gaseous composition of the atmosphere surrounding it. These modifications of atmosphere composition may affect both chemical and microbiological degradation pathways of fish constituents and thereby the volatile organic compounds produced. In addition to monitoring Total Volatile Basic Nitrogen (TVB-N), which is a common indicator to estimate non-processed fish freshness, analytical techniques such as gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry or techniques referred to as "electronic nose" allow either the identification of the entire set of these volatile compounds (the volatilome) and/or to selectively monitor some of them, respectively. Interestingly, monitoring these volatile organic compounds along fish storage might allow the identification of early-stage markers of fish alteration. In this context, to provide relevant information for the identification of volatile markers of non-processed packaged fish quality evolution during its storage, the following items have been successively reviewed: (1) inner atmosphere gaseous composition and evolution as a function of fish packaging systems; (2) fish constituents degradation pathways and analytical methods to monitor fish degradation with a focus on volatilome analysis; and (3) the effect of different factors affecting fish preservation (temperature, inner atmosphere composition, application of hurdle technology) on volatilome composition.

Four-band terahertz metamaterial absorber based on Dirac semimetal for a refractive index sensing application

We design a four-band narrow-band near-perfect absorber based on bulk Dirac semimetal (BDS) metamaterial in the terahertz region. The absorber has a top-to-bottom three-layer structure of a BDS layer, an insulating dielectric slab, and a gold layer. The BDS is flexible and tunable, allowing the Fermi energy level to be adjusted by changing the applied bias voltage, thus changing the absorption characteristics of the absorber. We use the time-domain finite-difference method to simulate the absorption characteristics of the absorber, which could achieve four discrete near-perfect absorption peaks at 0.98 THz, 1.70 THz, 2.02 THz, and 2.36 THz. The absorber is polarization sensitive, and the conversion between four-band absorption and three-band absorption is achieved by changing the incident polarization angle. We also change the structure of the absorber to study the absorption characteristics and break the structural symmetry to achieve a larger number of absorption peaks. Besides, the sensing performance of four-band narrow-band absorption is analyzed, and the maximum sensitivity of the absorber is 112.78 GHz/RIU. The device should have vast application prospects for bio-detection and high-sensitivity biosensing detection.

Recent Advances and Applications of Rapid Microbial Assessment from a Food Safety Perspective

Unsafe food is estimated to cause 600 million cases of foodborne disease, annually. Thus, the development of methods that could assist in the prevention of foodborne diseases is of high interest. This review summarizes the recent progress toward rapid microbial assessment through (i) spectroscopic techniques, (ii) spectral imaging techniques, (iii) biosensors and (iv) sensors designed to mimic human senses. These methods often produce complex and high-dimensional data that cannot be analyzed with conventional statistical methods. Multivariate statistics and machine learning approaches seemed to be valuable for these methods so as to "translate" measurements to microbial estimations. However, a great proportion of the models reported in the literature misuse these approaches, which may lead to models with low predictive power under generic conditions. Overall, all the methods showed great potential for rapid microbial assessment. Biosensors are closer to wide-scale implementation followed by spectroscopic techniques and then by spectral imaging techniques and sensors designed to mimic human senses.

A four-band and polarization-independent BDS-based tunable absorber with high refractive index sensitivity

A four-band terahertz tunable narrow-band perfect absorber based on a bulk Dirac semi-metallic (BDS) metamaterial with a microstructure is designed. The three-layer structure of this absorber from top to bottom is the Dirac semi-metallic layer, the dielectric layer and the metal reflector layer. Based on the Finite Element Method (FEM), we use the simulation software CST STUDIO SUITE to simulate the absorption characteristics of the designed absorber. The simulation results show that the absorption rate of the absorber is over 93% at frequencies of 1.22, 1.822, 2.148 and 2.476 THz, and three of them have achieved a perfect absorption rate of more than 95%. We use the localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR), impedance matching and other theories to analyze its physical mechanism in detail. The influence of the geometric structure parameters of the absorber and the incident angle of electromagnetic waves on the absorption performance has also been studied in detail. Due to the rotational symmetry of the structure, the designed absorber has excellent polarization insensitivity. In addition, the maximum adjustable range of absorption frequency is 0.051 THz, which can be achieved by changing the Fermi energy of BDS. We also define the refractive index sensitivity (S), which is 39.1, 75.4, 119.1 and 122.0 GHz RIU^-1 for the four absorption modes when the refractive index varies in the range of 1 to 1.9. This high-performance absorber has a very good development prospect in the frontier fields of bio-chemical sensing and special environmental detection.

Attenuated Total Reflection for Terahertz Modulation, Sensing, Spectroscopy and Imaging Applications: A Review

Terahertz (THz) technique has become one of the most promising analytical methods and has been applied in many fields. Attenuated total reflection (ATR) technique applied in THz spectroscopy and imaging has been proven to be superior in functionalities such as modulation, sensing, analyzing, and imaging. Here, we first provide a concise introduction to the principle of ATR, discuss the factors that impact the ATR system, and demonstrate recent advances on THz wave modulation and THz surface plasmon sensing based on the THz-ATR system. Then, applications on THz-ATR spectroscopy and imaging are reviewed. Towards the later part, the advantages and limitations of THz-ATR are summarized, and prospects of modulation, surface plasmon sensing, spectroscopy and imaging are discussed.

Trace-Level, Multi-Gas Detection for Food Quality Assessment Based on Decorated Silicon Transistor Arrays

Multiplexed gas detection at room temperature is critical for practical applications, such as for tracking the complex chemical environments associated with food decomposition and spoilage. An integrated array of multiple silicon-based, chemical-sensitive field effect transistors (CSFETs) is presented to realize selective, sensitive, and simultaneous measurement of gases typically associated with food spoilage. CSFETs decorated with sensing materials based on ruthenium, silver, and silicon oxide are used to obtain stable room-temperature responses to ammonia (NH₃ ), hydrogen sulfide (H₂ S), and humidity, respectively. For example, one multi-CSFET sensor signal changes from its baseline by 13.34 in response to 1 ppm of NH₃ , 724.45 under 1 ppm H₂ S, and 23.46 under 80% relative humidity, with sensitive detection down to 10 ppb of NH₃ and H₂ S. To demonstrate this sensor for practical applications, the CSFET sensor array is combined with a custom-printed circuit board into a compact, fully integrated, and portable system to conduct real-time monitoring of gases generated by decomposing food. By using existing silicon-based manufacturing methodologies, this room-temperature gas sensing array can be fabricated reproducibly and at low cost, making it an attractive platform for ambient gas measurement needed in food safety applications.

Two isomeric and distinguishable H2S fluorescence probes for monitoring spoilage of eggs and visualizing exogenous and endogenous H2S in living cells

Accurate fabrication of fluorescence probes to efficiently monitor and detect H₂S levels in the fields of foodstuffs and physiology is crucial.

Screening freshness of seafood by measuring trimethylamine (TMA) levels using helium-plasma ionization mass spectrometry (HePI-MS)

Background

Trimethylamine (TMA) is a marker used for monitoring the quality of seafood because it is the primary component of the “fishy” odor.

Methods

The levels of TMA in seafood samples were directly measured by helium-plasma ionization mass spectrometry (HePI-MS). Each sample was directly exposed to the HePI source, and the intensity of the m/z 60 signal for protonated TMA was monitored by a selected-ion-recording (SIR) protocol. Using a set of TMA-spiked water standards, the TMA levels in seafood samples were quantified.

Results

The signal intensity of the m/z 60 ion from shrimp samples maintained at room temperature for 2 days can be attenuated to baseline levels by adding lime juice. The amounts of TMA in samples of salmon and shrimp recovered from some sushi preparations, and in squid samples, were found to be 0.24 μg, 0.16 μg, and 17.2 μg per gram, respectively.

Conclusions

HePI-MS is an efficient technique to screen and monitor the TMA content and assess the quality of seafood.

Industrial Applications of Terahertz Sensing: State of Play

This paper is a survey of existing and upcoming industrial applications of terahertz technologies, comprising sections on polymers, paint and coatings, pharmaceuticals, electronics, petrochemicals, gas sensing, and paper and wood industries. Finally, an estimate of the market size and growth rates is given, as obtained from a comparison of market reports.