Sodium chloride sensing by using a near-field microwave microprobe

Abstract

The authors observed the NaCl concentration of solutions using a near-field microwave microprobe (NFMM). Instead of the usual technique, they take advantage of the noncontact evaluation capabilities of a NFMM. A NFMM with a high Q dielectric resonator allows observation of small variations of the permittivity due to changes in the NaCl concentration. By measuring the reflection coefficient S11, they could observe the concentration of NaCl. The measured signal-to-noise was about 53dB and the minimum detectible signal was about 0.005dB∕(mg∕ml). In order to determine the probe selectivity, they measured a mixture solution of NaCl and glucose.