GaN integrated optical devices for glycerol viscosity measurement

This Letter presents the fabrication and characterization of a chip-scale GaN optical device for measuring glycerol viscosity. The monolithically integrated GaN chip with a size of 1 × 1 mm² comprises a light-emitting diode (LED) and a photodiode (PD) on a transparent sapphire substrate. The glycerol droplet applied to the device acts as a medium for coupling light from the LED to the PD. When a mechanical impulse is applied, the droplet undergoes a damped vibration that depends on its viscosity, causing a change in its shape and altering the path of light propagation. The viscosity of the glycerol sample can be determined by obtaining the rate of attenuation of the measured photocurrent signals. The proposed unit offers a fast time response in microseconds and requires only a small sample volume of 5 µl. The developed device is highly suitable for the practical measurement of glycerol viscosity due to its miniaturization, low cost, and ease of operation without the need for external optical components.