Analytical Sciences

Characteristics of a Surface Plasmon Resonance Sensor Combined with a Poly(vinyl chloride) Film-based Ionophore Technique for Metal Ion Analyses

Satoshi NISHIMURA,*  Toshifumi YOSHIDOME,** Wataru KYUUTOKU,* Masaru MITSUSHIO,** and Morihide HIGO**

*Department of Applied Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Kagoshima University, 1-21-40, Korimoto, Kagoshima 890-0065, Japan
**Department of Applied Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Kagoshima University, 1-21-40, Korimoto, Kagoshima 890-0065, Japan

The characteristics of a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensor prepared by coating a metal film evaporated on a prism with a polymer film containing tetra-n-butyl thiuram disulfide (TBTDS) were studied. The differences in the sensitivity, selectivity, and detection limit for a Zn²⁺ ion of the SPR sensor were reported as a function of the thickness of the polymer film, the kind of a metal film, and the kind of a polymer film. The thinner was the polymer film, the higher was the sensitivity, and the lower was the detection limit. The Ag film gave to the SPR sensor higher sensitivity than the Au film. TBTDS contained in the poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) film slightly improved the selectivity toward the Zn²⁺ ion. A non-conditioned poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) film containing TBTDS gave a lower detection limit of 1.0 x 10^-6 mol/l, which is similar to that obtained by using an ion selective electrode (ISE) method, than the PVC film. The PVC film, however, gave higher concentration resolution than the PMMA film.

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