Planar optical waveguide interferometer (15, 25, 35, 45) comprising: a substrate (8, 28, 38, 48); a bimodal
waveguide (10, 20, 20′, 30, 40) comprising at least one layer (1, 2, 3) deposited on said substrate (8, 28, 38, 48), said bimodal
waveguide (10, 20, 20′, 30, 40) being designed for supporting a zero-order and a first-order transverse propagating
modes, said transverse propagating
modes having different dispersion; a sensor plate (21, 31, 41, 51) located in a selected area of the upper side of said bimodal
waveguide (10, 20, 20′, 30, 40), said sensor plate (21, 31, 41, 51) being designed for receiving a chemical, biological or physical stimulus, said stimulus being capable of changing the
effective refractive index of said bimodal waveguide (10, 20, 20′, 30, 40). The bimodal waveguide (10, 20, 20′, 30, 40) comprises confining means (9) designed for confining light in lateral direction, the bimodal waveguide (10, 20, 20′, 30, 40) being thus designed for supporting one lateral mode.
Chip, sensor and sensing method comprising a
planar optical waveguide interferometer are provided.