A miniaturized sensor consisting of concentric metallic nanorings on the end facet of an optical fiber

A polarization-independent optical sensor is created by fabricating a concentric gold ring grating with a period of 900 nm on the end facet of an optical fiber. The sensing function of this miniaturized device is realized by sending white light as a probe to the gold rings and collecting the response signal in the back-reflection through the optical fiber. A pronounced peak due to the Rayleigh anomaly of the gold ring grating is observed in the reflection spectrum, the center wavelength of which is sensitive to the change in the environmental refractive index of the fiber end facet. Theoretical analysis not only shows excellent agreement with the experimental results, but also gives insights into the mechanisms of this kind of sensor. Using the center position of the Rayleigh peak as the response signal, a high sensitivity dλ/dn of 900 nm per unity refractive index is realized for this sensor and a resolution of Δn/n ≈ 1% is demonstrated in preliminary experiments. The sensitivity is solely determined by the period of the grating.     

透镜阵列光刻法消差原理分析

透镜阵列光刻法用一个柱面阵列透镜代替常规光刻法中的柱面透镜形成光程差,将由衍射所引起的瞬变图形错开,消除由于光刻模板与被刻光栅之间因间隙引起的衍射误差。用光学传递函数方法说明了透镜阵列消除光刻中衍射误差的原理。实验表明透镜阵列光刻法,可以较好的消除衍射误差,研制出高质量的光栅。     

纳米坐标测量机的三维接触式测头机构

介绍了一种新型的用于纳米坐标测量机的三维微纳米接触触发式测头机构.本测头以灵敏度高、抗干扰性强的布拉格光纤光栅(FBG)为测量的敏感元件,根据FBG对轴向应变变化敏感的特点,开发了一套有效触发测量力小的柔性悬架机构,该机构为三悬丝-六边中心连接体的悬架结构,相间隔的3边延伸悬臂与3根布拉格光纤光栅相连,当测球发生预行程变化时,由测杆带动柔性悬架机构产生偏摆,从而带动3根FBG发生轴向的拉伸或压缩,进而产生传感信号的输出.由于测头结构复位性是衡量测球和工件分离后能否回到初始位置的标准,是测头其他各项指标的基础,因此结合激光干涉仪和精密微动平台,采用光学非接触干涉测量方法对该测头机构的实际复位性能进行了测量.结果表明,测头系统采用15 N的预紧力安装悬丝,可得到较好的复位性和灵敏度,该测头机构复位性精度在20 nm以内,满足微纳米量级高精度测量的需要.     

Optical grating diffraction method: from strain microscope to strain gauge

The grating diffraction method for direct strain measurement is reviewed. Two systems which use this method are presented. The first system is a compact strain microscope. A Leitz optical transmitting microscope with white light source is reconstructed by developing a loading and recording system. Gratings with median density of between 40 and 200 lines/mm are used. With the help of a Bertrand lens, the Fourier spectrum of the grating is formed with high image quality on the CCD sensor plane. Software is developed to precisely, quickly and automatically determine the diffraction spot centroids. The second system is a new strain sensor based on a high-frequency grating and two Position Sensor Detectors (PSDs). The grating, attached to the surface of the specimen, is illuminated by a focused laser beam, generally with a frequency of 1,200 lines/mm. The centroids of diffracted beam spots from the grating are automatically determined using two PSD sensors connected to a personal computer. The shift of diffracted beam spots due to specimen deformation is detected. Strain sensitivity of one micro-strain can be obtained, as can a 0.4 mm spatial resolution for strain measurement. The system can be used for both static and dynamic tests.     

Achromatic system for a twisted alignment liquid crystal wavefront corrector

A twisted nematic liquid crystal wavefront corrector (TN-LCWFC) partially modulates the incident polarized light. A blazed grating may be preapplied on the TN-LCWFC to filter the unmodulated light for the purpose of stable adaptive correction. However, for broadband light, the dispersion of the blazed grating affects the image resolution. An achromatic method is presented to eliminate the dispersion of the blazed grating. Based on a prism model, we analyze the achromatic principle. An achromatic system with a conjugated blazed grating and an achromatic lens is given to eliminate the dispersion. An experiment was done with two transmitted blazed gratings so as to validate our method. Finally, a liquid crystal spatial light modulator was used as a conjugated grating to eliminate the dispersion of the blazed grating in an adaptive optics system. The results showed that the dispersion was partially compensated, and a resolvable image was achieved with a 600-700 nm wave band.     

Sensitivity enhancement of grating interferometer based two-dimensional sensor arrays using two-wavelength readout

Diffraction gratings integrated with microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) sensors offer displacement measurements with subnanometer sensitivity. However, the sensitivity of the interferometric readout may drop significantly based on the gap between the grating and the reference surface. A two-wavelength (2-λ) readout method was previously tested using a single MEMS sensor for illustrating increased displacement measurement capability. This work demonstrates sensitivity enhancement on a sensor array with large scale parallelization (~20,000 sensors). The statistical representation, which is developed to model sensitivity enhancement within a grating based sensor array, is supported by experimental results using a thermal sensor array. In the experiments, two lasers at different wavelengths (633 and 650 nm) illuminate the thermal sensor array from the backside, time-sequentially. The diffracted first order light from the array is imaged onto a single CCD camera. The target scene is reconstructed by observing the change in the first diffracted order diffraction intensity for both wavelengths. Merging of the data from two measurements with two lasers was performed by taking the larger of the two CCD measurements with respect to the reference image for each sensor. ~30% increase in the average sensitivity was demonstrated for a 160×120 pixel IR sensor array. Proposed architecture is also applicable to a variety of sensing applications, such as parallel biosensing and atomic force microscopy, for improved displacement measurements and enhanced sensitivity.     

Replicated arrays of hybrid elements for application in a low-cost micro-spectrometer array

Abstract

We report on the fabrication and characterization of replicated hybrid elements for low-cost micro-spectrometer array applications. An array of hybrid elements, where one surface combines the fairly large dimensions of refractive microlenses with the submicron features of a diffraction grating, was successfully replicated by hot embossing. The parameters are: lens diameter=990 μm, height=60 μm, grating period=1 μm, linewidth=300 nm and grating depth=2 μm. These replicated spectrometer elements showed a maximum resolution of 2.25 nm and a stray-light suppression better than 30 dB.     

Lensed fiber probes designed as an alternative to bulk probes in optical coherence tomography

We demonstrate a compact all-fiber sampling probe for an optical coherence tomography (OCT) system. By forming a focusing lens directly on the tip of an optical fiber, a compact sampling probe could be implemented. To simultaneously achieve a sufficiently long working distance and a good lateral resolution, we employed a large-mode area photonic crystal fiber (PCF) and a coreless silica fiber (CSF) of the same diameters. A working distance of up to 1270 microm, a 3 dB distance range of 2210 microm, and a transverse resolution of 14.2 microm were achieved with the implemented PCF lensed fiber; these values are comparable to those obtainable with a conventional objective lens having an NA of 0.25 (10 x). The performance of the OCT system equipped with the proposed PCF lensed fiber is presented by showing the OCT images of a rat finger as a biological sample and a pearl as an in-depth sample.     

Surface plasmon resonance imaging of biomolecular interactions on a grating-based sensor array

A surface plasmon resonance sensor array based upon a grating substrate was developed for the detection of biomolecular interactions. The substrate consisted of a gold grating prepared by wet chemical treatment of a commercial recordable compact disk. A custom-built floating pin microspotter was constructed to deliver solutions containing omega-functionalized linear alkanethiols to the grating surface and produce an array of sensor elements with different exposed functional end groups. This array platform can be used to study biomolecular interactions in a label-free, sensitive, and high-throughput format. To illustrate the performance of this device, a test protein (bovine serum albumin) was exposed to sensor elements containing an array of functionalized alkanethiols possessing either activated carboxylic acid-, amine-, or hydroxyl-terminated regions. Local changes in plasmon resonance were monitored in a fixed-angle imaging configuration. Plasmon images clearly distinguish the degree of protein attachment at the various surfaces. The molecular binding events on the grating were also confirmed by ellipsometry. This grating-based SPR imaging platform represents a simple and robust method for performing label-free, high-sensitivity, and high-throughput detection of biomolecular interactions.     

利用WDM光纤耦合器的光纤光栅传感解调技术

根据 WDM 光纤耦合器波长解调方案的工作原理、偏振特性以及影响系统波长分辨力的因素,提出一种改进的利用 WDM 光纤耦合器的光纤光栅传感解调技术。该技术在原技术的基础上,采用偏振控制器控制入射光偏振状态,提高了解调的精度和稳定性。对 WDM 光纤耦合器的多次波长扫描结果表明,采用偏振控制器后,其波长误差可减小到 5pm 左右。实验采用 1540/1560nm的 WDM 光纤耦合器对单点光纤光栅应变传感器进行静态解调,结果表明:按此技术开发的解调系统具有 0.01nm 波长分辨力和 10nm 的波长线性解调范围。     

Accuracy improvement in peak positioning of spectrally distorted fiber Bragg grating sensors by Gaussian curve fitting

To improve measurement accuracy of spectrally distorted fiber Bragg grating temperature sensors, reflection profiles were curve fitted to Gaussian shapes, of which center positions were transformed into temperature information. By applying the Gaussian curve-fitting algorithm in a tunable bandpass filter demodulation scheme, approximately 0.3 degrees C temperature resolution was obtained with a severely distorted grating sensor, which was much better than that obtained using the highest peak search algorithm. A binary search was also used to retrieve the optimal fitting curves with the least amount of processing time.     

Modeling, design, fabrication, and testing of a fiber Bragg grating strain sensor array

The modeling, design, simulation, fabrication, calibration, and testing of a three-element, 15.3 cm fiber Bragg grating strain sensor array with the coherent optical frequency domain reflectometry (C-OFDR) interrogation technique are demonstrated. The fiber Bragg grating array (FBGA) is initially simulated using in-house software that incorporates transfer matrices. Compared to the previous techniques used, the transfer matrix method allows a systemwide approach to modeling the FBGA-C-OFDR system. Once designed and simulated, the FBGA system design is then imprinted into the core of a boron-germanium codoped photosensitive fiber using the phase mask technique. A fiber optic Fabry-Perot interferometric (FPI) strain gauge calibrator is then used to determine the strain gauge factor of a single fiber Bragg grating (FBG), and the results are used on the FBGA. The FPI strain gauge calibrator offers nondestructive testing of the FBG. To test the system, the FBGA is then attached to a 75 cm cantilever beam and interrogated using an incremental tunable laser. Electric strain gauges (ESGs) are then used to independently verify the strain measurements with the FBGA at various displacements of the cantilever beam. The results show that the peak strain error is 18% with respect to ESG results. In addition, good agreement is shown between the simulation and the experimental results.     

Multi-wavelength raman imaging using a small-diameter image guide with a dimension-reduction imaging array

A commercially available fiber-optic Raman probe was modified for high-resolution spectral Raman imaging using a 350 microm diameter optical fiber image guide coupled to a dimension-reduction imaging array (DRIA). The DRIA comprised 672 optical fibers, arranged as a square array (21 x 32 fibers) on one end and a linear array (672 x 1 fibers) on the other. An imaging spectrograph was used with the DRIA to acquire multi-wavelength Raman images from -250 to 1800 cm(-1) at a spectral resolution of approximately 5 cm(-1). The utility of this technique for in situ and remote Raman imaging is demonstrated by monitoring the polymerization of a model polymer, dibromostyrene (DBS), while simultaneously measuring the Raman Stokes/ anti-Stokes ratio as a function of sample heating time, over a sample area of approximately 4 x 1.6 mm.     

CO2 laser-grooved long period fiber grating temperature sensor system based on intensity modulation

A long period fiber grating (LPFG) temperature sensor system based on intensity modulation is developed. The LPFG employed is fabricated by the use of a focused CO2 laser beam to carve periodic grooves on the fiber. The temperature measurement resolution of up to 0.1 degrees C has been obtained within the temperature range between 20 degrees C and 100 degrees C. The system uses a simple intensity measurement method and exhibits the advantages of convenient intensity measurement, double temperature sensitivity, high resolution, simple configuration, and low cost.     

Temperature-insensitive fiber Bragg grating tilt sensor

A temperature-insensitive optical fiber tilt sensor is presented. The sensor scheme uses a prestrained fiber Bragg grating to sense the strain, which depends on the tilt angle. To compensate for the temperature effect, materials that have different linear thermal expansion behaviors are used for implementation of the sensor body. The differentiation in the linear thermal expansion would then cause a counter effect to the original temperature effect. Experimental tests show an accuracy of +/-0.167 degrees in tilt angle measurement. A temperature stability better than +/-0.33 degrees over the temperature range from 27 degrees C to 75 degrees C is demonstrated. The resolution 0.0067 degrees in tilt angle measurement is achieved by using our preliminary sensor with a dimension of 1 6 x 5 x 5 cm(3).     

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.     

Expanding the realm of fiber optic confocal sensing for probing position, displacement, and velocity

We describe a fiber optic confocal sensor (FOCOS) system that uses an optical fiber and a lens to accurately detect the position of an object at, or close to, the image plane of the fiber tip. The fiber characteristics (diameter and numerical aperture) and optics (lens F/# and magnification) define the span and precision of the sensor and may be chosen to fit a desired application of position and displacement sensing. Multiple measurement points (i.e., fiber-tip images) may be achieved by use of multiple wavelengths in the fiber, so that each wavelength images the fiber at a different plane due to the chromatic dispersion of the optics. Further multiplexing may be achieved by adding fibers on the optical axis. A FOCOS with multiplexed fibers and wavelengths may also be used for velocity measurements.     

Optical fiber long-period grating humidity sensor with poly(ethylene oxide)/cobalt chloride coating

A long-period fiber grating (LPFG) humidity sensor is reported utilizing poly(ethylene oxide)/cobalt chloride (PEO/CoCl2) as a hybrid hygrosensitive cladding coating. A thin overlay of the material is deposited on the LPFG and with exposure to different ambient humidity levels, its spectral properties are modified. The material parameters associated with the sensing mechanism may include those of refractive index, absorption, and morphological alterations of the overlaid material. Relative humidity variations in the range from 50% to 95% have been detected with a resolution better than 0.2%. The response time constant of the fiber sensor is of the order of a few hundred milliseconds.     

Polarimetric fiber laser sensor for hydrostatic pressure

A polarimetric Fabry-Perot fiber laser sensor for fluid pressure up to 100 MPa is investigated. The fluid acts on one of two elliptical-core fiber sections in the laser cavity, producing a shift in the differential phase of the two orthogonal polarization modes and thus a variation in the beat frequencies of the corresponding longitudinal laser modes. The second fiber section, with a 90 degrees offset in the core orientation, compensates for temperature-induced phase shifts. The dispersion in the birefringent fiber Bragg grating reflectors is employed to remove the near degeneracy of the polarization mode beat frequencies of a given order and to improve substantially the resolution of the sensor to a few parts in 10(6) of the free spectral range. Further investigations address the effect of the fluid on the integrity of the fiber, the influence of various fiber coatings on the sensor response, and the intrinsic stability of erbium-doped and undoped sensing fibers under fluid pressure.