Combined time-wavelength interrogation of fiber-Bragg gratings based on an optical time-domain reflectometry

A reflectometric method for the combined time-wavelength multiplexing of the fiber-Bragg-grating (FBG) signals is proposed. The method is based on the spectral filtering of the probe pulses generated by a fiber-optic reflectometer using a bandpass filter consisting of a fiber circulator and FBG. The interrogated Bragg gratings are recorded on a fiber line in groups with identical resonance wavelengths inside groups and different wavelengths from different groups. The separation of the signals of FBGs that have different resonance wavelengths is due to the tuning of the filter passband, and the separation of the signals of FBGs with identical wavelengths involves the time separation of the responses of the Bragg gratings to the probe pulse. The threshold sensitivity of the method in the measurement of the relative elongation of FBG is 0.5 × 10^?4. The considerable practical prospects of the method are related to its simplicity, reliability, and the application of the conventional reflectometric equipment.