On-chip plasmonic framework for scalable real time sensor networks

Environmental protection and food safety demand portable, cost-effective, and highly sensitive detection technologies. This paper presents a silicon nitride-based hybrid dielectric–plasmonic compact sensor for pesticide detection in agricultural and environmental samples. Leveraging the high RI contrast of silicon nitride, the design supports strong mode confinement and dual plasmonic resonances, achieving sensitivities of 1222 and 2364 nm/RIU, respectively. Finite-difference time-domain simulations validate the sensor’s performance, with evaluation of key metrics, including quality factor, figure of merit, and limit of detection. To enable scalable deployment, a software defined networking (SDN) framework is introduced for near real-time control, adaptive routing, and centralized coordination across photonic sensor nodes. The convergence of plasmonic sensing and SDN-based orchestration opens new possibilities for reconfigurable and intelligent platforms that can potentially shape the next generation of environmental monitoring systems.