Polarization multiplexed interrogation technique for FBG sensor array

Abstract

This paper proposes a polarization multiplexed interrogation technique for fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensor array. The novelty of the proposed model is its ability to reduce interference and cross talk, thus allowing larger number of FBG sensors to be interrogated in an array. The calibration technique has been illustrated in this work for the FBG sensor array, where data from each sensor are linearly polarized and multiplexed before co-propagation, to find out the tapping points that enable identification of each sensor data uniquely. Simulation has been carried out for odd number and even number of sensors in an array. Even with interfering input, this proposed scheme can interrogate and distinctively identify each sensor data using appropriate tuning of polarization-splitter, polarization-rotator, and polarization-attenuator at the detector end during the calibration process. The significance of the proposed method is its compact size, which makes this calibration system ready to be deployed in real-time sensing applications and data acquisition from the FBG sensor array.

Keywords

FBG / wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) / time division multiplexing (TDM) / spatial division multiplexing (SDM) / fiber-optic sensors

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