GRACED: Ultra-compact, low cost plasmo-photonic bimodal multiplexing sensor platforms

14 Apr 2022 | Announcements

GRACED: Ultra-compact, low cost plasmo-photonic bimodal multiplexing sensor platforms as part of a holistic solution for food quality monitoring

GRACED is an initiative of the Photonics Public Private Partnership. The project responded to the call H2020-ICT-2020-2 and received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 101007448. 

GRACED is focused on the development of a plasmo-photonic bimodal sensor for detection of contaminants in the fruit and vegetable value chains. GRACED directly responds to the challenge laid out in the Farm to Fork strategy for application of new technologies and scientific discoveries to food systems and for increasing public awareness benefiting all stakeholders. A Consortium of 14 partners from 8 countries across Europe will collaborate for 42 months to achieve project results. The project currently runs its 16th month of implementation. 

The multi-actor Consortium aims to:

  1. Develop a novel ultra-compact, cost-effective, plasmo-photonic bimodal sensor platform with on-chip light generation suitable for farm-to-fork applications
  2. Develop the GRACED sensing devices to cover different application requirements (re-usability, multi-modality, connectivity) 
  3. Develop the data analytics and sDSS platform to enable photonic-driven applications
  4. Validate the complete approach and its impact through real-world pilots
  5. Demonstrate the application-driven nature of the project and its impact in the EU farm-to-fork strategy implementation

GRACED proposes two devices, a portable analytical instrument for use across the value chain and an IoT node version within the production line or directly at the farm. Additionally, the GRACED team will also develop a data storing and analytics platform to store measurements arriving from the sensors connected to it, as well as valuable data coming from other sensors or routine measurements, while an App will allow informed decision-making. 

The project’s greatest innovation lies in the development of the plasmo-photonic bimodal interferometric sensor. GRACED promises delivery of cost-efficient low-loss photonic integrated circuits (PIC) with graphene-augmented plasmonic bimodal interferometers to deliver ultra-small-form-factor biosensor arrays. The biosensors will be planarly illuminated by on-chip Colloidal Quantum Dot (CoQD) clusters, avoiding complicated assembly with external optical sources or optical coupling schemes with stringent alignment requirements, and will be functionalized against 7 contaminants to be detected simultaneously. 

CyRIC is the project’s Coordinator responsible for all administrative and legal obligations the Consortium has towards the European Commission. CyRIC‘s technical role is the development of the main processing unit for the devices, and  the sample delivery hydraulics module. CyRIC is also responsible for integration management and assembly of the GRACED IoT node. CyRIC handles the project website and social media accounts (Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Instagram)