Patent ID: 8493560

Claim:
A method for determining the presence or concentration of a target entity in a medium, the method comprising: a) exposing a composite microresonator, including a dielectric microresonator and at least one plasmonic nanoparticle within the mode volume of the dielectric microresonator, to the medium; b) inducing light to resonate within the microresonator, thereby (1) generating (A) a resonant mode in association with the dielectric microresonator and (B) a plasmonic resonance in the at least one plasmonic nanoparticle, and (2) attracting the target entity to at least one plasmonic nanoparticle of the composite microresonator; and c) determining the presence, mass, or concentration of the target entity using a change in a characteristic of light exiting the composite microresonator.