Plasmonic mercury sensor and wearable gas detector - Project Abstract
Our proposed project, “Plasmonic mercury sensor and wearable gas detector,” will develop a miniaturized
and low-cost mercury sensor and apply it to personal exposure monitoring. This project will demonstrate
the feasibility of a powerful and sensitive mercury vapor sensor that is less than 0.2 cm3 in volume, draws
less than 1 Watt, and costs less than $40 in parts. During this project our sensor will be integrated into a
personal monitor to be the first personal mercury monitor that is wearable, immediate, and accurate in
complex environments. Newly available integrated optical modules will be employed to measure the
plasmonic signal of an amalgam nanoparticle film. Picoyune’s proprietary plasmonic mercury sensing
technique is uniquely capable of measurements in complex mixtures. The development of such a unique
device will benefit all parties concerned with mercury exposure. These include artisanal and small-scale
gold mining communities, other mining, dental offices, hospitals, laboratories, schools, and industrial
sites. Mercury monitoring costs hundreds of millions of dollars a year across diverse scientific, industrial,
and regulatory groups.
