Four-core fiber-based bending sensor

Abstract

A novel four-core fiber-based bending sensor has been proposed. The four-core fiber is used as the sensing element, the four cores of the fiber act as a four-beam interferometer, and the far-field interferogram grids with periodical distributions are formed on the fiber output end. Since the phase difference is a function of the radius of curvature, the change of the radius of curvature shifts the far-field interferometric grid pattern. A low-coherence laser diode with wavelength of 650 nm is adopted to illuminate the fiber, and the interferogram pattern in the far-field is recorded by a CCD camera. The relationship between the far-field grid pattern intensity distribution and the radius of curvature is established theoretically and confirmed experimentally.

Keywords

fiber optics / four-core fiber / bending sensor / far field / grid pattern

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 60577005) and the Teaching and Research Award Program for Outstanding Young Professors in Higher Education Institute, MOE, P. R. C., to Harbin Engineering University.

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

2014 Higher Education Press and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg