Signal processing in SPR fiber sensors: Some remarks and a new method

The importance of Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR)-based devices in the field of chemical and biological sensing and the expectations created in terms of sensitivity and resolution impose the necessity of developing an adequate methodology for the processing of the signals obtained and for the evaluation of the performance of the sensing systems. We discuss in depth and clarify the problem of the analysis of data acquiring and processing in SPR fiber sensors, show how in many cases this analysis could and must be improved and propose a new method of SPR curve shaping, apt for sensors encapsulated or inaccesible. We illustrate the use of the method with real experimental examples.