A polarization-independent torsion sensor based on the near-helical long period fiber grating

A torsion sensor based on the near-helical(NH) long period fiber grating(LPFG) is fabricated by using a high frequency pulsed CO_2 laser. Each groove of the NH-LPFG is spirally written in the four sides of a single-mode fiber. The NH-LPFG has a helical periodic vertical index modulation. This is different from the screw-type index modulation of the common helical LPFGs(H-LPFGs) fabricated in a twisted fiber. The torsion and temperature characteristics of the NH-LPFG are experimentally investigated. The temperature sensitivity is about0.0668 nm/°C. The torsion sensitivity is 0.103 nm/(rad/m) and independent of the polarization state of incident light.     

A new phase-shifted long-period fiber grating for simultaneous measurement of torsion and temperature

A novel phase-shifted long-period fiber grating(PS-LPFG)for the simultaneous measurement of torsion and temperature is described and experimentally demonstrated.The PS-LPFG is fabricated by inserting a pretwisted structure into the long-period fiber grating(LPFG)written in single-mode fiber(SMF).Experimental results show that the torsion sensitivities of the two dips are?0.114 nm/(rad/m)and?0.069 nm/(rad/m)in the clockwise direction,and?0.087 nm/(rad/m)and?0.048 nm/(rad/m)in the counterclockwise direction,respectively.The temperature sensitivities of the two dips are 0.057 nm/℃ and 0.051 nm/℃,respectively.The two dips of the PS-LPFG exhibit different responses to torsion and temperature.Simultaneous measurement of torsion and temperature can be implemented using a sensor.The feasibility and stabilization of simultaneous torsion and temperature measurement have been confirmed,and hence this novel PS-LPFG demonstrates potential for fiber sensing and engineering applications.     

Study of mode propagation with 632.8-nm laser in tapered fiber

The material dispersion of a tapered fiber is described by Sellmeier＇s equation. The dependence of refractive index on wavelength and doping concentration is discussed. A He-Ne laser with the output wavelength of 632.8 nm is used in the experiment. When the cutoff frequency of the fiber is less than the laser frequency, the guiding modes of a singl~-mode fiber （at 1550 am） are investigated. The results show that the original single-mode fiber becomes a multi-mode waveguide. The propagation and mode coupling of the light in the taper region are analyzed. By controlling the taper end size of the fiber, the unique tapered fiber can convert a multi-mode beam into a single-mode one.     

Fiber inline interferometric refractive index sensors fabricated by femtosecond laser and fusion splicing

A fiber inline interferometric refractive index （RI） sensor consisting of a microchannel and a fiber taper is proposed in this letter. The microchannel is fabricated by combining femtosecond laser micromachining and arc fusion splicing. No subsequent chemical etching process is needed. Three sensors with microchannel widths of 4, 8, and 10 μm are prepared. The sensitivity in the RI range from 1.33 to 1.35 is up to -361.29 nm/RIU at the microchannel width of 8 μm. The sensitivity is -20 times greater than that of the paired taper-based MZI sensors and long period fiber grating pair MZI sensors.     

FFPI-FBG hybrid sensor to measure the thermal expansion and thermo-optical coefficient of a silica-based fiber at cryogenic temperatures

In this Letter, a sensor consisting of a fiber Bragg grating(FBG) and a fiber Fabry–Perot interferometer(FFPI)sensor is developed to measure the coefficient of thermal expansion(CTE) and the thermo-optical coefficient(TOC) of a silica-based optical fiber at cryogenic temperatures. The FFPI is fabricated by welding together two acid-etched fibers. The temperature performance of the FFPI-FBG hybrid sensor is studied in the temperature range of 30–273 K. The CTE and TOC of the optical fiber at cryogenic temperatures are derived analytically and verified by experiments.     

Multi-functional optical fiber sensor system based on a dense wavelength division multiplexer

We propose a novel and efficient multi-functional optical fiber sensor system based on a dense wavelength division multiplexer(DWDM).This system consists of an optical fiber temperature sensor, an optical fiber strain sensor, and a 48-channel DWDM.This system can monitor temperature and strain changes at the same time.The ranges of these two sensors are from-20℃ to 100℃ and from-1000 με to 2000 με, respectively.The sensitivities of the temperature sensor and strain sensor are 0.03572 nm/℃ and 0.03808 nm/N, respectively.With the aid of a broadband source and spectrometer,different kinds and ranges of parameters in the environment can be monitored by using suitable sensors.     

Supermode analysis of seven-core photonic quasi-crystal fibers

We design custom-shaped modes for a sixfold symmetric photonic quasi-crystal fiber （PQF）, an optical fiber with a sixfold symmetric quasi-periodic array of air holes in the cladding region. The supermodes of the PQF are calculated by the finite element method, and the coupling of an in-phase supermode for the quasi-periodic optical fiber is numerically optimized to obtain identical values. The optimization is guaranteed by the selection of appropriate PQF design parameters. The eigenvalue equation associated with a seven-core PQF is derived from a coupled mode equation. We realize mode shaping and provide the far-field distribution mode of PQFs. The results are beneficial for the structural design and uniform distribution of the in-phase supermodes of PQFs.     

Fabrication of fiber-embedded multi-core photonic crystal fibers

A novel fabrication method of multi-core photonic crystal fibers is proposed on the basis of a fiber-embedded technique. A taper tower is used to modify the structures of the fiber preform, and four steps of fiber fabrication and different structures of fiber samples are given. The mode structures and beating characteristics of a photonic crystal fiber sample with two successive cores are investigated in detail with the help of a supercontinuum light source, a charge-coupled device （CCD） camera, and an optical spectrum analyzer. The test results show a clear beating phenomenon between two orthotropic polarization modes with a 2.8-nm peak interval in wavelength.     

Thermal characteristics of Nd~(3 )-doped fiber ring laser pumped by Ti:sapphire tunable laser

A Nd(3 )-doped fiber ring laser pumped by a CW Ti:sapphire tunable laser is reported. The characteristics of the system are studied for the first time at 77K and 300K. The results show a lower threshold and a higher slope efficiency at 77K than that at 300K. Applications of the Nd~(3 )-doped fiber ring laser in a multiplexing fiber sensor system and a fiber-ring-laser type temperature sensor are discussed.     

Fabrication of fiber-embedded multi-core photonic crystal fibers

A novel fabrication method of multi-core photonic crystal fibers is proposed on the basis of a fiber- embedded technique.A taper tower is used to modify the structures of the fiber preform,and four steps of fiber fabrication and different structures of fiber samples are given.The mode structures and beating characteristics of a photonic crystal fiber sample with two successive cores are investigated in detail with the help of a supercontinuum light source,a charge-coupled device(CCD)camera,and an optical spectrum analyzer.The test results show a clear beating phenomenon between two orthotropic polarization modes with a 2.8-nm peak interval in wavelength.     

High-temperature reflective sensor based on single fusion-splicing f iber taper without coating

A high temperature sensor based on an ultra-abrupt tapered fiber Michelson interferometer fabricated by the fusion-splicing method is proposed. The sensor consists of a single abrupt taper and the cleaved surface is used as the reflection mirror. The thermal characteristic is investigated at 25 to 1 000℃. The sensitivity of the sensor is observed to vary with the temperature, that is, 25 and 78 pm/℃ at 25-300 and 300-1 000℃, respectively. The Michelson interferometer sensors have the advantages of simple structure, cost effectiveness, compactness, and simple fabrication process.     

EFPI-FBG hybrid sensor for simultaneous measurement of high temperature and large strain

We report an extrinsic Fabry–Perot interferometer-fiber Bragg grating(EFPI-FBG) hybrid sensor in this letter. The interferometric cavity of the proposed hybrid sensor is composed of a glass capillary tube, a section of single-mode fiber, and a section of single-mode metal fiber with one FBG. The FBG processed by high-temperature annealing is used to measure temperature, whereas the fiber EFPI is adopted for strain measurement. One of the two aligned fibers is free along the axial direction, which is different from the traditional structure that both the fibers are fixed to glass capillary tube. Experimental results show that the sensor can measure high temperature and large strain simultaneously. The measuring range of temperature and strain for the hybrid sensor is up to 500 °C and 10,000 με, respectively. Effective temperature compensation of the hybrid sensor is realized, too.     

Refractive index and temperature sensor based on cladding-mode Bragg grating excited by abrupt taper interferometer

A sensing structure consisting of an abrupt taper spliced uniformly in to a fiber Bragg grating （FBG） is proposed and experimentally demonstrates refractive index （RI） and temperature measurements. Cladding modes are generated in the fiber through the abrupt taper containing the FBG. Most modes are reflected by the FBG at shorter wavelengths and reenter the launch fiber after passing through the abrupt taper. Spectral integrals are used to measure the power generated by the cladding and core modes. A sensitivity of-83.97 nW/RIU for ambient RI and a temperature sensitivity of 10 pm/℃ are obtained. No cross- sensitivity problems exist between ambient RI and temperature measurement.     

Hybrid Mach-Zehnder interferometric sensor based on two core-of fset attenuators and an abrupt taper in single-mode fiber

This study proposes a new hybrid Mach-Zehnder interferometric(MZI) sensor based on two core-offset attenuators and an abrupt taper in a single-mode fiber fabricated by a fiber-taper machine and electric arc discharge. When the distance between the two core-offset attenuators is stretched to 4500 μm, significant interference signals are detected with a prominent attenuation peak of ～28 dB. The proposed MZI can be used to measure temperature due to its low refractive index(RI) and strain cross-sensitivity. The temperature sensitivity is 34.95±0.04 and 106.70±0.04 pm/℃ in the temperature ranges of 14-250 and250-1000 ℃, respectively.     

Electron acceleration in the inverse free electron laser with a helical wiggler by axial magnetic field and ion-channel guiding

Electron acceleration in the inverse free electron laser (IFEL) with a helical wiggler in the presence of ion-channel guiding and axial magnetic field is investigated in this article. The effects of tapering wiggler amplitude and axial magnetic field are calculated for the electron acceleration. In free electron lasers, electron beams lose energy through radiation while in IFEL electron beams gain energy from the laser. The equation of electron motion and the equation of energy exchange between a single electron and electromagnetic waves are derived and then solved numerically using the fourth order Runge-Kutta method. The tapering effects of a wiggler magnetic field on electron acceleration are investigated and the results show that the electron acceleration increases in the case of a tapered wiggler magnetic field with a proper taper constant.     

Fiber-optic Fabry-Prot strain sensor based on graded-index multimode fiber

By using a graded-index multimode fiber (GI-MMF) with a relatively flat index profile and high refractive index of the fiber core, a microextrinsic fiber-optic Fabry Prot interferometric (MEFPI) strain sensor is fabricated through chemical etching and fusion splicing. Higher reflectance of the microcavity is obtained due to the less-curved inner wall in the center of the fiber core after etching and higher index contrast between the GI-MMF core and air. The maximum reflection of the sensor is enhanced 12 dB than that obtained by etching of the Er- or B-doped fibers. High fringe contrast of 22 dB is obtained. The strain and temperature responses of the MEFPI sensors are investigated in this experiment. Good linearity and high sensitivity are achieved, with wavelength-strain and wavelength-temperature sensitivities of 7.82 pm/με and 5.01 pm/°C, respectively.     

Measurement of Magnetic Properties of an Inertial Sensor with a Torsion Balance

A torsion balance is constructed to accurately measure the magnetic properties of the real proof mass of the inertial sensor. The magnetic susceptibility and remnant moment of a titanium proof mass are measured in the first experiment, and further improvements and the potential sensitivity are also discussed. This is significant for choosing the material of the proof mass and investigating the magnetic disturbances acting on the proof mass.     

Temperature-independent refractive index measurement based on Fabry-Perot fiber tip sensor modulated by Fresnel reflection

A simple fiber tip sensor for refractive index(RI) measurement based on Fabry-Perot(FP) interference modulated by Fresnel reflection is proposed and demonstrated.The sensor head consists of an etchinginduced micro air gap near the tip of a single-mode fiber.The microgap and the fiber tip function as two reflectors to form a FP cavity.The external RI can be unambiguously measured by monitoring the fringe contrast of the interference pattern from the reflection spectrum.The experimental results show that the proposed sensor achieves temperature-independent RI measurement with good linear response.The proposed sensor achieves a high RI resolution of up to 3.4×10 5 and has advantages of low cost and easy fabrication.     

Stability and vibration of a helical rod with circular cross section in a viscous medium

The stability and vibration of a thin elastic helical rod with circular cross section in a viscous medium are discussed. The dynamical equations of the rod in the viscous medium are established in the Frenet coordinates of the centreline with the Euler angles describing the attitudes of the cross section as variables. We have proved that the Lyapunov and Euler conditions of stability of a helical rod in the space domain are the necessary conditions for the asymptotic stability of the rod in the time domain. The free frequencies and damping coefficients of torsional and flexural vibrations of the helical rod in the viscous medium are calculated.     

Micro Extrinsic Fiber-Optic Fabry-Perot Interferometric Sensor Based on Erbium- and Boron-Doped Fibers

Micro extrinsic Fabry-Perot interferometers （MEFPIs）, with cavity lengths of up to ~ 9 μm and maximum fringe contrast of ~19 dB, are fabricated by chemically etching Er- and B-doped optical fibers and then splicing the etched fiber to a single-mode fiber, for the first time to the best of our knowledge. The strain and temperature responses of the MEFPI sensors are investigated experimentally. Good linearity and high sensitivity are achieved. Such a type of MEFPI sensor is cost-effective and suitable for mass production, indicating its great potential for a wide range of applications.