Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) biosensors consisting of alternate layers of silver (Ag) and TiO2 thin film have been proposed as a high sensitivity biosensor. The structure not only prevents the Ag film from oxidation, but also enhances the field inside the structure, thereby improving the performance of the sensor. Genetic algorithm (GA) was used to optimize the proposed structure and its maximum angular sensitivity was 384°/RIU (refractive index unit) at the refractive index environment of 1.3425, which is about 3.12 times that of the conventional Ag-based biosensor. A detailed discussion, based on the finite difference time domain (FDTD) method, revealed that an enhanced evanescent field at the top layer–analyte region results in the ultra-sensitivity characteristic. We expect that the proposed structure can be a suitable biosensor for chemical detection, clinical diagnostics, and biological examination.
The dynamic penetration test (DPT) and the Menard pressuremeter test (PMT) have been widely used in geotechnical survey of deep soils for megadam foundations in western China. The DPT measures are not well utilized due to the lack of correction factors and of empirical relationships for deep soils. This study investigates the relationships between the corrected DPT blow counts (
N
120
′
), pressuremeter modulus (EPMT), limit pressure (pL), deformation modulus (E0), and bearing capacity (fak) derived from the PMT results. Meanwhile, a nonlinear regression model is developed to predict the DPT correction factor (a) based on the raw DPT blow counts (N120) and the rod length (L) by integrating the available correction factors for shallow gravelly soils suggested by the code provisions and the deep soil data in this work. It is concluded that the proposed DPT correction factors match well with the code suggestions and the new compiled dataset, and the corrected DPT blow counts can be used to reasonably predict the engineering properties of deep sand and clay soils. Although the proposed correlations need to be tested among different soil types and regions, the results shed the light on in situ geotechnical tests and data utilization for deep and thick overburden.
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