A linearity interrogation technique with enlarged dynamic range for fiber Bragg grating sensing

An exact linearity interrogation technique with enlarged dynamic range for fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensor has been analyzed theoretically and demonstrated experimentally. The technique bases on two matched FBGs for receiving the reflected signal from the sensor FBG and two photodiodes (PDs) for collecting the reflected signal from the two receiver FBGs. The linear expression between the nature logarithm of the output ratio of the two PDs and Bragg wavelength of the sensor FBG is obtained on the condition that the bandwidths of the two receiver FBGs being equal to each other. The wavelength of the sensor FBG can be interrogated simply and accurately by the linearity technique according to the expression. In addition, a new tunable paralleled matched gratings interrogation scheme is proposed. The interrogation range can be enlarged and multiple FBG sensors can be interrogated simultaneously with the tunable interrogation scheme.     

Interrogating fiber Bragg grating sensors by thermally scanning a demultiplexer based on arrayed waveguide gratings

We evaluate a wavelength interrogation technique based on an arrayed waveguide grating (AWG). Initial results show that the Bragg wavelength of fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors can be precisely interrogated by thermally scanning an AWG-based demultiplexer. The technique potentially offers a low-cost, compact, and high-performance solution for the interrogation of FBG distributed sensors and multisensor arrays.     

Dynamic strain measurement using two wavelength-matched fiber Bragg grating sensors interrogated by a cascaded long-period fiber grating

In this work, we describe a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensing system using two wavelength-matched FBG sensors for static and dynamic strain measurement. A cascaded long-period fiber grating (CLPG)-based demodulation technique has been used to interrogate the two wavelength-matched FBG sensors. Experimental results of static strain measurement show that the proposed system has a strain resolution of 1 με. This system has also been used for dynamic strain measurement. An eddy current displacement meter-based system has been used as a comparison measurement. Experimental results of dynamic strain measurement have proved that the FBG sensing system has a good performance in the measurement of dynamic strain. The results of static and dynamic strain measurement indicate that the sensing system using two wavelength-matched FBG sensors is superior to the single FBG sensor system.     

基于虚拟仪器和可调谐激光技术的光纤光栅传感系统

提出了一种新颖的基于虚拟仪器(VI)和可调谐激光技术的光纤光栅(FBG)传感系统,利用可调谐激光对由光纤光栅组成的传感器阵列进行波长扫描,实现了多根光栅的复用准静态解调,并结合抖动技术和反馈环结构,使得探测信号在每一根传感光栅中心波长处过零,以提高系统在测定波长偏移时的分辨力。当反馈环工作在闭环状态下时,该系统还可对单根光栅实现动态跟踪锁定,实现单根光栅的动态解调。该传感系统的数据采集采用虚拟仪器技术,通过多通道同时输入输出实现了在线实时解调。实验采用了4根光栅组成传感阵列,获得了静态多根光栅小于1με和单根光栅动态频率10 Hz时3.3 n/εHz的解调分辨力,动态应变范围在850με。     

侧面研磨光纤Bragg光栅的外部折射率敏感特性研究

光纤Bragg光栅对外界折射率的变化不灵敏,无法直接作为气体、液体等的敏感元件.侧面研磨的光纤Bragg光栅,一侧包层减小至几微米,其辐射场可通过包层透射到被传感物质,因而被传感物质的折射率的变化可以改变光纤的有效折射率,从而使光栅的Bragg波长产生位移.实验中利用不同浓度的NaCl溶液来改变光纤光栅的外部折射率,Bragg中心波长的偏移量和浓度近似为线性关系.同时,透射功率的变化量和浓度也近似为线性关系.     

Addressing fiber Bragg grating sensors with wavelength-swept pulse fiber laser and analog electrical switch

A pulse train with a wavelength dependent time sequence is generated in a fiber laser configuration, which contains a cascaded wavelength-division-multiplexing (WDM) fiber Bragg grating (FBG) array and a tunable F-P filter. By distributing pulses to corresponding channels with a 1 × N analog electrical switch, a novel FBG sensors interrogation technique with advantages of high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and high interrogation speed is experimentally demonstrated. Then, a FBG sensing system based on this interrogation technique and the mature unbalanced scanning Michelson interferometer (USMI) demodulation technique is realized. The system has shown a sensitivity of 1.610°/με, for the 1555 nm FBG, which agrees well with the theoretical value of 1.674°/με.     

Optical fiber Bragg grating hydrogen sensor based on evanescent-field interaction with palladium thin-film transducer

Fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors in single-mode optical fibers are widely applied for measurement of temperature and strain. If exposing FBG sensors to an external analyte by planar side-polishing technique of the fiber, evanescent-field interaction yields a Bragg wavelength shift also by changing the refractive index of the analyte. Deposition of sensor-specific transducer layers on the side-polished fiber can specify this spectrally encoding and network-capable optochemical fiber Bragg grating refractometry to the monitoring of specific substances, absorbed gases and vapors. In this paper, the sensor principle is demonstrated for the example of a hydrogen gas sensor based on a palladium thin-film transducer. Hydrogen in 0.1–4% volume concentration range can be monitored by the spectral shift of the Bragg wavelength, which is caused by the decreasing complex refractive index of Pd with increasing absorption of hydrogen.     

动态匹配光栅解调方法波长读出优化研究

提出了采用一支价格低廉的微测力传感器作为匹配光栅解调系统的波长读出单元,不同于以往动态匹配光栅解调法采用拉伸匹配光栅的PZT驱动电压作为解调系统波长读出单元.当匹配光栅和传感光栅布喇格中心波长重叠时,光电探测器将接收到最大光信号.利用光纤光栅轴向受力和反射波长漂移的数学关系得到光纤光栅传感器的波长漂移.该解调系统解决了传统动态匹配解调系统中PZT本身特性对系统的影响,探测到的光纤光栅传感器反射波长和匹配光栅轴向受力大小具有很好的线性,系统线性大于0.999.本系统对于探测布喇格传感器应变分辩率达到1 με以下.     

Fiber-fault monitoring technique for passive optical networks based on fiber Bragg gratings and semiconductor optical amplifier

A novel monitoring method for in-service fault indemnification in passive optical networks (PONs) is proposed and demonstrated experimentally. The proposed monitoring technique is based on fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors and fiber laser scheme, and a semiconductor optical amplifier (SOA) is used to serve as a gain medium. By detecting the number of the wavelength lasing, the fiber-fault can be monitored without affecting the in-service channels. Moreover, the strain behavior on the FBGs has also been discussed.     

D形光纤Bragg光栅弯曲灵敏度的理论和实验研究

用材料力学理论分析了D形光纤Bragg光栅（D-shaped fiber Bragg grating,D-FBG）以及常规光纤Bragg光栅由弯曲引起的轴向应变,得到了光栅Bragg波长漂移的弯曲敏感特性.实验结果和理论计算结果基本相符.与常规FBG相比,该D-FBG的弯曲灵敏度要高近80倍.因此D-FBG可以直接应用于弯曲形变的测量,以及间接应用于压力、加速度等物理量的测量.理论分析和实验结果对采用该类型光纤光栅的器件和传感系统的设计具有参考意义.     

一种新颖封装的耐高温光纤Bragg光栅温度传感器

分析了光纤Bragg光栅的传感原理,将光纤光栅置于细钢管通过一种耐高温胶粘结细钢管两端使光纤光栅在高温下不脱落,并通过细钢管上的中间螺纹给光纤光栅施加预应力,使光纤光栅在温度变化过程中一直保持张紧状态,保证传感器有很好的重复性和良好的线性.实验结果表明:该FBG光纤光栅温度传感器灵敏度为0.0252 nm/℃,有良好的重复性和线性,温度测量范围达200℃以上,可应用在高温环境测量温度的变化.     

On the possible use of optical fiber Bragg gratings as strain sensors for geodynamical monitoring

Optical fiber sensors can be used to measure many different parameters including strain, temperature, pressure, displacement, electrical field, refractive index, rotation, position and vibrations. Among a variety of fiber sensors, fiber Bragg gratings (FBG) have numerous advantages over other optical fiber sensors. One of the major advantages of this type of sensors is attributed to wavelength-encoded information given by the Bragg grating. Since the wavelength is an absolute parameter, signal from FBG may be processed such that its information remains immune to power fluctuations along the optical path. This inherent characteristic makes the FBG sensors very attractive for application in harsh environments, “smart structures” and on-site measurements.This paper reviews the achievements about the FBG as a strain and temperature sensor and describes the potential applications of FBG sensors for applications in the field of geophysics and its expected development in the near future. The applications could include: rock deformation, fiber-optic geophone, optical based seismograph, vertical seismic profiling and structural monitoring of civil structures. Different techniques to detect strains and various applications will be reviewed and discussed. The problem of temperature–strain cross sensitivity, that is particularly difficult to eliminate, is addressed and approaches to overcome it are discussed.     

基于封装光纤Bragg光栅传感器的混凝土应变监测试验研究

研究了光纤Bragg光栅封装工艺,提出并实现了两种封装光纤Bragg光栅传感器:工字型钢管封装光纤Bragg光栅应变传感器及钢管封装光纤Bragg温度传感器。研究了传感器的埋设工艺,采用金属丝固定法、钢管抽出法两种方法进行了埋设。将它们埋入到钢筋混凝土梁中,实现对混凝土的拉、压应变及温度的测量。结果显示,在试验梁弹性阶段,可以较为准确的监测混凝土应变。     

A planar lightwave circuit based micro interrogator and its applications to the interrogation of multiplexed optical fiber Bragg grating sensors

Optical fiber Bragg grating sensors have found potential applications in many fields, but the lack of a simple, field deployable and low cost interrogation system is hindering their deployment. To tackle this, we have developed a micro optical sensor interrogator using a monolithically integrated planar lightwave circuit based echelle diffractive grating demultiplexer and a detector array. The design and development of this device are presented in this paper. It has been found that the measurement range of this micro interrogator is more than 25 nm with better than 1 pm resolution. This paper also reports the applications of the micro interrogator developed to the monitoring of commercial optical fiber Bragg grating (FBG) temperature sensors and mechanical sensors. The results obtained are very satisfactory and in some cases, they are better than those obtained using commercial bench top lab equipment.     

Enhancement of measurement accuracy in fiber Bragg grating sensors by using digital signal processing

Wavelength detection accuracy in fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors can be increased by use of digital signal processing after photo-detection. Finite impulse response and infinite impulse response algorithms were implemented and used to improve the wavelength detection accuracy of peak detection and time-zero-crossing techniques. The wavelength detection resolution can be improved by an order of magnitude compared with that obtained directly from an optical spectrum analyzer/tunable laser.     

高灵敏度光纤光栅传感特性测试仪研制

本文报道了一种新颖的光纤光栅传感测试仪,仪器的波长变化分辨率可达0.002nm,应变分辨率达1.7με.本仪器可以用于光纤布喇格光栅传感实用化测量,也可以作为光纤光栅传感技术教学的实验设备.     

基于光纤布拉格光栅传感器的光纤光栅智能夹层试验研究

传感元件与复合材料的一体化是智能结构研究的最终目标之一。设计一种具有自诊断功能的标准化、模块化光纤智能夹层系统,正是实现这种一体化最有潜力的技术途径。采用聚酰亚胺薄膜制作了基于光纤布拉格光栅（FBG）传感器的光纤光栅智能夹层,对智能夹层中光纤布拉格光栅传感器的应变、温度特性进行了标定试验,并建立了基于光纤布拉格光栅传感器光纤光栅智能夹层的应变、温度测量模型。试验表明,智能夹层内布拉格光栅波长偏移与应变、温度之间具有良好的线性关系。不过在温度测量时,必须考虑被埋人结构的热膨胀效应。利用光纤光栅智能夹层内光纤布拉格光栅传感器网络和先进信息处理技术,可以建立结构损伤主动、在线和实时监测系统。     

A simple temperature-insensitive fiber Bragg grating displacement sensor

The study on fiber Bragg grating (FBG) displacement sensor based on monitoring the back-reflected power from an array of novelly embedded FBG sensors is presented. The sensor is a uniform FBG with three sections that are embedded in different layer in a composite lamina. Its bandwidth is displacement dependent and hence its reflected power varies almost linearly with displacement and it is insensitive to temperature variation. Thus, only low-cost photodetector (PD) is required to monitor displacement. This study demonstrates a novel fiber sensor, a method of fabricated the same, and a method to achieve simultaneous multi-sensor measurement.     

High resolution instrumentation system for fibre-Bragg grating aerospace sensors

A passive technique for high-resolution detection of the wavelength of peak reflection from fibre Bragg grating (FBG) sensors is presented. The approach, based on a de-convolution of the FBG spectrum and the spectrometer resolution, essentially overcomes the low spectral resolution (≈0.1 nm) associated with commercial spectrometers employing CCD detection. The performance of two algorithms, the Centroid Detection algorithm (CDA) and the least squares method (LSQ), are compared. The LSQ algorithm offers resolution enhancement of at least two orders of magnitude and is shown to be independent of the FBG intensity and bandwidth over a broad range.     

优化光纤光栅传感器匹配光栅解调方法的研究

利用悬臂梁调谐和两个并联二次反射匹配解调光栅的方法实现了光纤布喇格光栅(FBG)传感器的高精度大范围应变传感测量.通过并联方式,选择合适的匹配光栅波长,增大了可检测的应变范围,同时解决了双值问题.应变传感信号经两路解调光栅解调,并由数据采集卡采集后,由计算机进行两路并联信号的综合处理后获取更准确的结果,使得系统性能得到提升和优化.试验结果与理论分析一致.