Polarization analysis of surface-relief D-fiber Bragg gratings

Surface-relief fiber Bragg gratings exhibit substantially more polarization dependence than standard fiber Bragg gratings. Using D-fiber with different core orientations, surface-relief gratings are analyzed and fabricated to determine the polarization dependence. We show that the largest Bragg reflection occurs for the polarization state with a dominant TE field component parallel to the flat surface of the fiber. The polarization dependence is adjusted by changing the index of refraction of the surrounding media and by fabricating the surface relief grating using rotated core D-fiber.     

Single-pulse fiber Bragg gratings and specific coatings for use at elevated temperatures

The technique of recording fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) with single exposure pulses during the fiber drawing process allows production of such gratings in complex array structures, with high mechanical strength of the fiber and in a simple and cost-efficient way. This is of special interest for the growing field of fiber sensor applications with FBGs. A general advantage of fiber sensor systems is their ability to be used also at elevated temperatures compared with conventional electric or electronic sensors. For this purpose, the fiber itself as well as the grating structure and the fiber coating should be stable under such elevated temperature conditions. We have investigated different coating materials and possibilities of making temperature-stable FBGs of types I and II in the range of 100 degrees C-1000 degrees C with good reflection efficiency by single-pulse exposure during the fiber drawing process.     

Refractive index and temperature sensitivity characteristics of a micro-slot fiber Bragg grating

Fabrication and characterization of a UV inscribed fiber Bragg grating (FBG) with a micro-slot liquid core is presented. Femtosecond (fs) laser patterning/chemical etching technique was employed to engrave a micro-slot with dimensions of 5.74 μm(h)×125 μm(w)×1388.72 μm(l) across the whole grating. The device has been evaluated for refractive index (RI) and temperature sensitivities and exhibited distinctive thermal response and RI sensitivity beyond the detection limit of reported fiber gratings. This structure has not just been RI sensitive, but also maintained the robustness comparing with the bare core FBGs and long-period gratings with the partial cladding etched off.     

Superstructured fiber-optic contact force sensor with minimal cosensitivity to temperature and axial strain

In this work a new superstructured, in-fiber Bragg grating (FBG)-based, contact force sensor is presented that is based on birefringent D-shape optical fiber. The sensor superstructure comprises a polyimide sheath, a stress-concentrating feature, and an alignment feature that repeatably orients the sensor with respect to contact forces. A combination of plane elasticity and strain-optic models is used to predict sensor performance in terms of sensitivity to contact force and axial strain. Model predictions are validated through experimental calibration and indicate contact force, axial strain, and temperature sensitivities of 169.6 pm/(N/mm), 0.01 pm/με, and -1.12 pm/°C in terms of spectral separation. The sensor addresses challenges associated with contact force sensors that are based on FBGs in birefringent fiber, FBGs in conventional optical fiber, and tilted FBGs. Relative to other birefringent fiber sensors, the sensor has contact force sensitivity comparable to the highest sensitivity of commercially available birefringent fibers and, unlike other birefringent fiber sensors, is self-aligning with respect to contact forces. Unlike sensors based on Bragg gratings in conventional fiber and tilted Bragg gratings, the sensor has minimal cosensitivity to both axial strain and changes in temperature.     

Dual temperature and strain measurement with the combined fluorescence lifetime and Bragg wavelength shift approach in doped optical fiber

We have constructed fiber-optic sensors to measure temperature and strain by combining the properties of fiber Bragg gratings with the fluorescent lifetimes of various doped fibers. Sensors have been made with the fiber Bragg grating written directly into the doped fiber to ensure the collocation of the strain and temperature measurement points. Results are compared with those obtained previously from a Bragg grating written into standard photosensitive fiber spliced to doped fiber. Standard deviation errors of 7 microepsilon and 0.8 degrees C have been obtained for strain and temperature ranges of up to 1860 microepsilon and 120 degrees C, respectively.     

Analysis of fiber bragg gratings by a side-diffraction interference technique

A new nondestructive, noncontact, and sensitive technique for fiber Bragg grating geometry and index-fault location measurements is presented. Two plane-wave probe laser beams are incident upon the grating from the side at angles that satisfy the Bragg-reflection condition. An interference pattern is formed behind the fiber between the first-order diffracted beam (from one probe beam) and the zero-order transmitted beam (from the second probe beam). The axial grating index modulation and the grating period are functions of the fringe visibility and the fringe period, respectively. The method is sensitive and is applicable even in the case of relatively weak gratings. Unchirped and chirped Bragg gratings have been studied with the proposed technique. We demonstrate accuracies of 1 x 10(-4) for measurement of the index modulation and 0.01 nm for measurement of the period. As well as for the analysis of most already-fabricated gratings, this technique is useful for in situ analysis of a long fiber Bragg grating as such a grating is translated along its axis during the fabrication process.     

Studies on bridging tractions – simultaneous bridging tractions and COD measurements

The main objective of this work is to investigate the bridging tractions in a model composite using optical fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors written into selected reinforcing fibers. Simultaneously, the crack opening displacement (COD) is measured using a speckle interferometry technique. The measurements are useful in the verification of the relation between the COD and bridging tractions established with the use of the weight function method. Center crack specimens made of epoxy and reinforced with one layer of optical fibers are prepared and tested under remote tension parallel to the fibers. Bragg gratings of 0.17 to 0.38 mm in length are introduced in selected fibers for direct, non invasive, local measurements of axial strains in these fibers. A controlled central crack, bridged by intact fibers, is introduced by a laser technique such that the FBGs are located between the crack faces. The results on the forces obtained from the FBGs and the COD-weight function method show good agreement. The experimental results also compare very well with 3-dimensional numerical simulations of the actual specimen geometry and loading configuration.     

Two-stage hybrid optimization of fiber Bragg gratings for design of linear phase filters

We present a new hybrid optimization method for the synthesis of fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) with complex characteristics. The hybrid optimization method is a two-tier search that employs a global optimization algorithm [i.e., the tabu search (TS) algorithm] and a local optimization method (i.e., the quasi-Netwon method). First the TS global optimization algorithm is used to find a "promising" FBG structure that has a spectral response as close as possible to the targeted spectral response. Then the quasi-Newton local optimization method is applied to further optimize the FBG structure obtained from the TS algorithm to arrive at a targeted spectral response. A dynamic mechanism for weighting of different requirements of the spectral response is employed to enhance the optimization efficiency. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the method, the synthesis of three linear-phase optical filters based on FBGs with different grating lengths is described.     

Characteristics of short-period blazed fiber Bragg gratings for use as macro-bending sensors

The characteristics of short-period blazed fiber Bragg gratings for use as macro-bending sensors are discussed. This sensor is able to detect macro bending with the transmitted power variation of the first side mode in the blazed fiber Bragg grating. Since an incident ray experiences different variations of tilt angles with respect to bending direction, the blazed fiber Bragg grating has different coupling efficiencies of the first side mode, which can be reduced considerably in the case of twisted blazed fiber Bragg gratings.     

Fibre bragg gratings optical sensing technology

Fibre optic technology is a well established field in the world of smart structures. While optical communications systems date back as far as the late 1700s when the French engineer Claude Chappe invented the ‘optical telegraph’, advances in optical fibres did not really take off until Corning Glass Works (now Corning, Inc.) developed single-mode fibres with attenuation below 20 dB/km in 1970¹. Now fibre optics are widely used in the telecommunications industry. This breakthrough also led the way for the development of fibre optic sensors. While there are many types of optical sensors, the focus of this article is on the fibre Bragg grating sensor. In-line fibre Bragg gratings (FBGs) were developed as narrow band optical filters for the telecommunications industry². Television commercials by the major telephone companies describe the capability of transmitting as many as 16 telephone calls on the same optical fibre link, a capability made possible with wavelength division multiplexing using Bragg grating or equivalent spectral filtering technology. This intrinsic multiplexing capability and their sensitivity to thermo-mechanical loads also render in-fibre Bragg gratings one of the most promising distributed sensor technologies for structural systems. There are many other applications of FBGs including shape, moisture and corrosion sensing.     

Chromatic dispersion measurement using a multiwavelength frequency-shifted feedback fiber laser

In this paper, we present the realization of a fiber laser source emitting simultaneously over 17 wavelengths spread over the whole C-band. An acoustooptic frequency shifter is placed in the laser ring cavity to suppress the cross-gain saturation effects of the erbium-doped fiber. The emitted wavelengths are fixed by a set of fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs). A power uniformity reaching 6 dB is achieved by inscribing the FBGs while monitoring the laser output. We demonstrate the reliability of this laser as a source for characterization of optical components and networks by the measurement of optical fiber chromatic dispersion. The measurement is performed over the whole telecommunication C-band (1530-1560 nm) using the time-of-flight method. We perform the measurement on three different fibers with different levels of dispersion, namely a standard fiber, a nonzero dispersion shifted fiber, and a dispersion compensating fiber. The results are compared with measurements obtained using a standard network analyzer. The agreement between the two methods is better than /spl plusmn/1%, thus proving the suitability of the developed laser source for this application.     

Second-harmonic generation in second-harmonic fiber Bragg gratings

We consider the production of second-harmonic light in gratings resonant with the generated field, through a Green's function approach. We recover some standard results and obtain new limits for the uniform grating case. With the extension to nonuniform gratings, we find the Green's function for the second harmonic in a grating with an arbitrary phase shift at some point. We then obtain closed form approximate expressions for the generated light for phase shifts close to π/2 and at the center of the grating. Finally, comparing the uniform and phase-shifted gratings with homogeneous materials, we discuss the enhancement in generated light and the bandwidth over which it occurs, and the consequences for second-harmonic generation in optical fiber Bragg gratings.     

Dynamic two-axis curvature measurement using multicore fiber Bragg gratings interrogated by arrayed waveguide gratings

We describe the use of arrayed waveguide gratings (AWGs) in the interrogation of fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) for dynamic strain measurement. The ratiometric AWG output was calibrated in a static deflection experiment over a +/-200 microepsilon range. Dynamic strain measurement was demonstrated with a FBG in a conventional single-mode fiber mounted on the surface of a vibrating cantilever and on a piezoelectric actuator, giving a resolution of 0.5 microepsilon at 2.4 kHz. We present results of this technique extended to measure the dynamic differential strain between two FBG pairs within a multicore fiber. An arbitrary cantilever oscillation of the multicore fiber was determined from curvature measurements in two orthogonal axes at 1125 Hz with a resolution of 0.05 m(-1).     

All-optical flip-flop based on nonlinear effects in fiber Bragg gratings

We demonstrate a novel design for a passive all-optical R-S flip-flop with separate set-rest ports based on nonlinearity in the fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs). The spectrum of FBGs in the presence of the Kerr effect is investigated, and cw and transient characteristics of nonlinear-induced bistability of the passive distributed feedback structures are studied by numerical solving of coupled-mode equations. It is shown that a pulse with a pulsewidth of 0.15 ns can switch the state of the flip-flop.     

Passive Temperature-Compensating Technique for Microstructured Fiber Bragg Gratings

The thermal drift of the characteristic wavelength of fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) photowritten in the core of microstructured fibers (MOFs) is significantly reduced by inserting a liquid of suitable refractive index into their holes. For instance, the spectral range of variations is divided by a factor of 4 over a temperature range larger than 20degC in a six-hole MOF, and the maximum sensitivity is reduced. Such passive FBG temperature compensation technique is of great interest for applications involving accurate sensing free of thermal effects.     

A Novel Fiber-Optic Tapered Long-Period Grating Sensor for Pressure Monitoring

The method and the required installations for fabricating tapered long-period fiber gratings can be simpler than that of standard fiber Bragg gratings, and the fabrication process is faster. To our knowledge, the tapered long-period fiber grating pressure sensor is presented here for the first time. In this paper, the fabrication method for tapered long-period fiber gratings, the sensing principle, the sensor structure, the measurement setup, and the preliminary results are presented and discussed. The pressure sensitivity of the sensor is as high as 5.1 pm/bar.     

Inverse scattering algorithm for reconstructing lossy fiber Bragg gratings

We demonstrate an inverse scattering algorithm for reconstructing the structure of lossy fiber Bragg gratings. The algorithm enables us to extract the profiles of the refractive index and the loss coefficient along the grating from the grating transmission spectrum and from the reflection spectra, measured from both sides of the grating. Such an algorithm can be used to develop novel distributed evanescent-wave fiber Bragg sensors that measure the change in both the refractive index and the attenuation coefficient of the medium surrounding the grating. The algorithm can also be used to analyze and to design fiber Bragg gratings written in fiber amplifiers. A novel method to overcome instability problems in extracting the parameters of the lossy grating is introduced. The new method also makes it possible to reduce the spectral resolution needed to accurately extract the grating parameters.     

Fiber mode coupling in transmissive and reflective tilted fiber gratings

Whereas core-mode reflection and core-mode-to-radiation-mode coupling in tilted fiber Bragg gratings is well understood, as is coupling between a core mode and higher-order core and cladding modes in untilted gratings, here we analyze in detail the coupling among core modes and cladding modes in reflective and transmissive tilted fiber gratings. We show that strong coupling between an LP(01) core mode and the exact (1m) cladding modes occurs in a transmissive tilted grating for nearly any tilt angle except angles close to 90 degrees , whereas the LP(01)-to-(lm) cladding mode coupling (l not equal 1) is appreciable only for tilt angles just below 90 degrees (~88 degrees ). In a reflective grating, strong coupling between the LP(01) core mode and the exact (1m) cladding modes occurs only for angles less than ~5 degrees , whereas coupling to (1m) cladding modes for m > 1 occurs only for angles greater than ~5 degrees . Coupling among bound core modes exhibits a similar behavior, except that in general the coupling is stronger. Experimentally we show coupling to both higher-order bound core modes and cladding modes in a transmissive tilted grating at visible and near-infrared wavelengths.