Mach-zehnder and modified sagnac-distributed fiber-optic impact sensor

An interferometric technique is described to detect and locate perturbations along an optical fiber. This distributed sensor has a position-dependent response to time-varying disturbances such as strain or temperature. A modified Sagnac interferometer configuration that incorporates an additional coupler and a mirror allows separation of the Sagnac and the Mach-Zehnder signals. Operation of the new configuration was verified experimentally with a 100-m-long sensing fiber. The discrepancy between actual and measured locations of disturbances applied to the fiber did not exceed 0.6 m.     

Noncontact detection of ultrasonic waves using fiber optic Sagnac interferometer

This paper describes a fiber optic sensor suitable for noncontact detection of ultrasonic waves. This sensor is based on the fiber optic Sagnac interferometer, which has a path-matched configuration and does not require active stabilization. Quadrature phase bias between two interfering laser beams in the Sagnac loop is applied by controlling the birefringence using a fiber polarization controller. A stable quadrature phase bias can be confirmed by observing the interferometer output according to the change of phase bias. Additional signal processing is not needed for the detection of ultrasonic waves using the Sagnac interferometer. Ultrasonic oscillations produced by conventional ultrasonic piezoelectric transducers were successfully detected, and the performance of this interferometer was investigated by a power spectrum analysis of the output signal. Based on the validation of the fiber optic Sagnac interferometer, noncontact detection of laser-generated surface waves was performed. The configured Sagnac interferometer is very effective for the detection of small displacement with high frequency, such as ultrasonic waves used in conventional nondestructive testing (NDT)     

Multiplexed interferometric fiber-optic sensors with digital signal processing

A microcontroller-based digital signal processing system developed for use with fiber-optic sensors for measuring pressure in internal combustion engines is described. A single distributed feedback laser source provides optical power for four interferometric sensors. The laser current is repetitively modulated so that its optical frequency is nearly a linear function of time over most of a cycle. The interferometer phase shift is proportional to the elapsed time from the initiation of a sawtooth until the sensor output signal level crosses a threshold value proportional to the laser output power. This elapsed time, assumed to vary linearly with the combustion chamber pressure, is determined by the use of a digital timer-counter. The system has been used with fiber Fabry-Perot interferometer transducers for in-cylinder pressure measurement on a four-cylinder gasoline-powered engine.     

Optical-fiber vibration sensor using step interferometry

An all-fiber vibration sensor based on step interferometry is described. The sensor consists of a modified Michelson interferometer in which the ends of the reference and signal arms are assembled and fixed together to produce regular distributed interference fringes. Five photodetectors with relative phase shifts of π/2 placed on the fringes acquire five intensity patterns simultaneously. One reconstructs the vibration amplitude by using the well-known five-step algorithm. A vibration sensor with these characteristics was constructed, and its performance was investigated.     

Embedded fiber-optic Fabry-Perot ultrasound sensor

A fiber-optic ultrasound sensor is presented. The sensor consists of a continuous length of single-mode optical fiber with a built-in Fabry-Perot interferometer. The acoustic pressure produces changes in the index of refraction along the interferometer cavity through the strain-optic effect, thus modulating the reflected power of the light propagating in the fiber. The dielectric internal mirrors that form the interferometer are fabricated by joining a fiber coating with a TiO(2) film at one end to an uncoated fiber by electric arc fusion splicing. Experimental results have been obtained for sensors embedded in plastic and graphite composite materials, using ultrasound waves in the range from 100 kHz to 5 MHz. Values for the optical phase shift amplitude as large as 0.5 rad were obtained at an acoustic frequency of 200 kHz for a 1.1-cm-long interferometer embedded in plastic.     

Development of a differential optical-fiber displacement sensor

A novel optical-fiber displacement sensor is proposed and demonstrated. It consists of a laser diode light source, an optical-fiber probe, and two photodetectors. The bundling of the probe is sectioned into three parts: a centrally positioned fiber in the bundle for illumination, the first-neighbor fibers for receiving (part I), and the remaining fibers for receiving (part II). The ratio of the difference to the sum of the output signals from the part I and the part II receiving fibers can eliminate the variation in the sensitivity of the sensor to reflectivity of the target. The performance of the sensor is geometrically analyzed. The working distance is determined by the distance from the centered illuminating fiber to the boundary between the part I and the part II receiving fibers. The experimental measurements made with three different reflectivity targets confirm that the sensor performance is independent of the three reflectivities, as predicted by the analysis.     

Dual Michelson interferometers for distributed vibration detection

A distributed fiber optic vibration sensor is described, in which two Michelson interferometers are used as phase detectors and two 3×3 couplers are deployed to demodulate the time-varying phase change caused by vibration. The two interferometers are separated by four wavelength division multiplexers. The position of the vibration is obtained by signal correlation, which can be used as a perimeter security sensor to locate the intruder. The experimental results with a 4012?m fiber sensor are discussed.     

The theoretical output of a ring core fluxgate sensor

This article proves that the output from a ring core sensor is directly proportional to the first time derivative of the product of dynamic permeability and magnetic intensity perturbation within the core caused by an external, uniform magnetic field. (Dynamic permeability is defined to be the slope of the hysteresis loop at a given point in time.) Assuming that ellipsoidal shells can approximate the core, the demagnetization factor can be "estimated" in the first order to be proportional to the first power of the quantity tape thickness (or number of wraps) divided by the core diameter. The constant of proportionality is determined from laboratory data. When an additional scale adjustment is applied to the resulting sensor output formula, the computed output tracks laboratory data for a range of sensor geometries.     

A Compact Fiber-Optic Flow Velocity Sensor Based on a Twin-Core Fiber Michelson Interferometer

A novel fiber-optic flow velocity sensor based on a twin-core fiber Michelson interferometer has been proposed and demonstrated. The sensor only is a segment of twin-core fiber acting as cylinder cantilever beam. The force exerted on the cylinder by the slow flow speeds of order mm/s of the fluid with unknown velocity bends the fiber, which corresponds to the shift of the phase of the twin-core in-fiber integrated Michelson interferometer.     

基于干涉解调技术的光纤激光器水声传感系统

分析了基于Michelson干涉解调技术的光纤激光器水声传感的原理,在一段掺铒光纤中写入具有π相移的光纤光栅构成光纤激光器,水声压力作用在激光器上引起激光工作波长的变化;采用基于3×3耦合器的偏振无关的非平衡光纤Michelson干涉仪将激光波长变化转化为干涉仪的相位变化;干涉仪的输出由光电探测器转换后使用DSP进行信号解调.针对3×3耦合器分光比不对称的问题,本文提出利用实时调整幅度的2路干涉信号进行解调的方案,该方案不需要3×3耦合器有严格的分光比,消除了外界环境对解调输出的非线性影响.水声探测实验表明,光纤激光器水声传感系统的声压灵敏度为-166.5 dB(参考值1 rad/μPa),解调结果与水声信号具有良好的线性关系.     

一种单频激光干涉仪非线性误差修正方法研究

针对单频激光干涉仪在位移测量中存在的非线性误差问题,研究了一种基于几何距离最小化的Heydemann修正算法,使用Jamin干涉仪和纳米位移台搭建了验证性实验。Jamin干涉仪是一种基于平面镜的差分结构单频干涉仪,当被测物体移动时,干涉仪输出两路相位差为90°的正交信号,这两路信号既用于Jamin干涉仪解算位移也用于验证论文的修正算法。实验结果表明,修正后的位移的拟合优度与Jamin干涉仪解算结果接近,决定系数约为1。相比Jamin干涉仪,在压电陶瓷同等驱动条件下,修正位移与电容传感器的位移的残差均较小,修正精度均高于Jamin干涉仪解算结果。     

Fiber-optic Sagnac interferometer for noncontact structural monitoring in power plant applications

The design of a noncontact fiber-optic sensor is described for the detection of acoustic emission for structural integrity monitoring in high-temperature power plant applications. The sensor is based on a Sagnac interferometer and produces an output proportional to target velocity, without the need for active phase stabilization. It is inherently insensitive to low-frequency perturbations of the instrument or the target and incorporates an environmentally insensitive downlead, which may be of arbitrary length. It is shown that the sensor is capable of meeting the specifications for structural integrity monitoring of high-temperature power plant components based on acoustic emission detection and has a velocity resolution of 50 nm s(-1) Hz(-1/2).     

1 x N star coupler as a distributed fiber-optic strain sensor in a white-light interferometer

A novel technique of using a 1 x N star fiber optic coupler as a distributed strain sensor in a white-light interferometer to measure the distribution of strain is presented. The measuring principle and 1 x 4 star coupler with four fiber optic strain sensors are demonstrated. The experiment is performed with four sensors attached to a combination plastic specimen.     

Suppression of polarization errors in fiber-ring interferometer by polarizing fibers

Polarization errors in a Sagnac fiber-ring interferometer are considered. It is shown that the joint application of polarizing fibers at the input of the interferometer and the sensing coil is able to radically suppress these errors.     

琼斯矩阵在分布式光纤传感器偏振态分析中的应用

针对基于Sagnac原理的分布式光纤传感器中光波偏振态在双折射影响下所带来的干涉信号"偏振诱导衰落"问题,运用琼斯矩阵分析法,建立了传输光偏振态影响系统功率传输系数的数学模型;根据仿真分析的结果,发现使用反射镜作为反射元件,只能消除光纤圆双折射的影响,而不能消除线性双折射的影响.因此,提出了使用法拉第旋转镜提高系统抗偏振衰落能力的改进方法,仿真结果表明可以很好地消除传感光纤的线性双折射和圆双折射的影响.     

Quasi-distributed fiber-optic strain sensor: principle and experiment

Sensors capable of making distributed measurements allow for monitoring of the entire structure. Optical fiber sensors are especially attractive for this purpose, since they are geometrically versatile and can be readily integrated within various types of structure and material. Development and characteristics of a quasi-distributed intrinsic fiber-optic strain sensor based on white-light interferometry are described. The research presented here describes the development of a new optical fiber sensor system for measurement of structural strains based on double white-light interferometry. Individual segments of single-mode optical fibers forming a common-path interferometer are linked in series, and a scanning white-light interferometer provides for distributed sensing of strain signals from various locations in the structure. The system is configured for automatic compensation of drift due to environmental effects, i.e., temperature and vibration. Strain gauges were employed for comparison and verification of strain signals as measured by the new system. The experimental results demonstrate the linearity of the system and the capability for distributed sensing of strains.     

Neural processing-type fiber-optic strain sensor

A neural-processing-type strain sensor insensitive to thermal variation is presented and calibration of the device through modulation of the processing system's internal parameters is described. The sensor exploits the variation of the far-field polarization pattern in a single-mode birefringent fiber under the influence of longitudinal strain. A temperature-compensating fiber element is built in, making the sensor assembly immune to thermal variation. Sampling of the sensor output and parallel distributed processing of the samples are integrated within the sensor. The processor manages both a training function and a generalization function. The training function modulates a small-size linear network built into the system. In the working phase, the generalization function is used to recover measurement information. If the sensor is thermally compensated, the network gives a reading of the measurand with an error not exceeding 0.1%. Applicability of the processing system to bimodal sensor output is also described     

一种新型光纤电流传感器的设计

本文提出了一种新型的高压电流光纤传感器 ,该系统由具有相位压缩原理的Sagnac干涉仪光路构成 ,与通常的干涉仪相比该系统的动态测量范围扩大数百倍 ,而且系统不受外界缓变量的影响 ,系统采用相位切换技术使干涉仪保持在正交干涉状态     

Single-frequency Q-switched erbium-doped fiber ring laser by combination of a distributed Bragg reflector laser and a Mach-Zender interferometer

A single-frequency Q-switched erbium-doped fiber ring laser is implemented for producing a single frequency with 25-Mhz laser linewidth, Q-switched pulses with a high peak power at 1557.5 mm. The single longitudinal mode is selected by a distributed Bragg reflector fiber laser, and a fiberoptic Mach-Zehnder interferometer acts as a Q-switch. The peak power and the average power of the Q-switched pulses vary with the repetition rate.     

Micromachined low-finesse Fabry-Perot interferometer for the measurement of DC and AC electrical currents

A micromachined low finesse Fabry-Perot interferometer for measuring DC and AC electrical current is presented. Interrogation of the microcavity is achieved by a dual-wavelength fiber Bragg grating technique working in quadrature. A linear relation between the DC electrical current and the optical phase defined by the microcavity was detected. Large enhancement of the sensitivity of the microcavities is presented with the use of a planar coil instead of a power line. The sensitivity of the sensor with the planar coil configuration is 7.9 rad/A and resolution of /spl sim/0.18 mA//spl radic/Hz is achieved when the distance between the planar coil and the transducer head is 2 mm. The response of the sensor for AC measurements is 0.14 V/A with a resolution of 6 mA//spl radic/Hz when the distance between the power line and the transducer head is 5.5 cm.