# An Integrated Plasmonic Sensing Array for Chemical Fingerprinting and Flavor Profiling in Beverages and Other Liquids

## TL;DR

A new plasmonic sensing system can create unique optical fingerprints for liquids, helping to distinguish between different beverages and detect subtle chemical differences.

## Contribution

The development of a reusable, multiplexed plasmonic sensing platform for chemical fingerprinting and flavor profiling of liquids.

## Key findings

- The platform can distinguish between broad categories of chemically diverse beverages.
- It captures subtle chemical variations even in highly dilute samples like mineral waters.
- The system enables rapid fingerprinting and analysis of reversible supramolecular interactions.

## Abstract

We report a reusable cross-reactive plasmonic sensing
system that
generates unique optical fingerprints for any liquid mixture. The
platform leverages a multiplexed plasmonic chip and droplet microarray
methodology for creating 24 orthogonally modified sensors coupled
with hyperspectral imaging. We demonstrate the versatility and sensitivity
of our platform by distinguishing not only between broad categories
of chemically diverse beverages but also between individual products
within those categories, capturing subtle chemical variations even
within highly dilute samples, such as mineral waters. Capable of rapidly
fingerprinting liquid samples and measuring the kinetics of reversible
supramolecular interactions underlying those fingerprints, this technology
represents a significant advance in cross-reactive liquid-phase sensor
arrays. Our portable tool provides a practical solution for QA/QC
in beverage production, a platform to extend liquid fingerprint analysis
beyond food and drink, and, with array expansion, the potential to
profile the complex molecular attributes that shape taste and flavor.