Integrated thermal sensor comprising a photonic crystal

An integrated photonic crystal sensor (IPCS) comprising photonic elements, including:

• a photonic source (PS), a photonic crystal waveguide sensor (PCWS) comprising a photonic crystal (PC), and a photonic crystal waveguide detector (PCWD);
• and
• a photonic carrier signal created in the PS that propagates from the PS into and through the PCWS, and terminates in the PCWD,
• wherein the PCWD receives the photonic carrier signal that propagates through the PCWS and detects an amplitude of the photonic carrier signal, wherein the PCWD is sensitive to the amplitude and wherein the photonic carrier signal is propagated between the photonic elements through separate photonic waveguide (PW) or photonic crystal waveguide (PCW) interposer structures,
• wherein the PCWS is sensitive to an analyte by way of a detected change in amplitude of the photonic carrier signal
• wherein the photonic carrier signal is propagated between the photonic elements through separate photonic waveguide (PW) or photonic crystal waveguide (PCW) interposer structures,
• and further including one or more micro-platforms supported by nanowires in which the one or more micro-platforms is at least partially supported from a surrounding substrate by multiple electrically-conducting phononic nanowires, the one or more micro-platforms comprising one or more of the PS, PCWS, and PCWD
• wherein said phononic nanowires comprise a layer of crystalline semiconductor further comprising a phononic structure, wherein the phononic structure comprises phonon scattering sites and/or phononic crystal,
• wherein the layer reduces thermal conductivity
• and wherein the PS, PCWS, and PCWD are configured to identify a molecular species of the analyte.