photonic sensors review progress of optical fiber sensors and its application in harsh environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Min; Ma, Xiaohong; Wang, Liwei; Lai, Shurong; Zhou, Hongpu; Zhao, Huafeng; Liao, Yanbiao

2011-03-01

Fiber sensors have been developed for industry application with significant advantages. In this paper, Fiber sensors for oil field service and harsh environment monitoring which have been investigated in Tsinghua University are demonstrated. By discussing the requirements of practical applications, the key technologies of long-period fiber grating (LPFG) based fiber sensor, optical spectrum analyzer for oil detection, laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) system for soil contamination monitoring, and seismic sensor arrays are described.

Plasmon-Enhanced Optical Sensors: A Review

PubMed Central

Li, Ming; Cushing, Scott K

2014-01-01

Surface plasmon resonance (SPR) has found extensive applications in chemi-sensors and biosensors. Plasmons play different roles in different types of optical sensors. SPR transduces a signal in a colorimetric sensor through shifts in the spectral position and intensity in response to external stimuli. SPR can also concentrate the incident electromagnetic field in a nanostructure, modulating fluorescence emission and enabling plasmon-enhanced fluorescence to be used for ultrasensitive detection. Furthermore, plasmons have been extensively used for amplifying a Raman signal in a surface-enhanced Raman scattering sensor. This paper presents a review of recent research progress in plasmon-enhanced optical sensing, giving an emphasis on the physical basis of plasmon-enhanced sensors and how these principles guide the design of sensors. In particular, this paper discusses the design strategies for nanomaterials and nanostructures to plasmonically enhance optical sensing signals, also highlighting the applications of plasmon-enhanced optical sensors in health care, homeland security, food safety and environmental monitoring. PMID:25365823

High-temperature fiber optic pressure sensor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Berthold, J. W.

1984-01-01

Attention is given to a program to develop fiber optic methods to measure diaphragm deflection. The end application is intended for pressure transducers capable of operating to 540 C. In this paper are reported the results of a laboratory study to characterize the performance of the fiber-optic microbend sensor. The data presented include sensitivity and spring constant. The advantages and limitations of the microbend sensor for static pressure measurement applications are described. A proposed design is presented for a 540 C pressure transducer using the fiber optic microbend sensor.

Specialty fibers for fiber optic sensor application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bennett, K.; Koh, J.; Coon, J.; Chien, C. K.; Artuso, A.; Chen, X.; Nolan, D.; Li, M.-J.

2007-09-01

Over the last several years, Fiber Optic Sensor (FOS) applications have seen an increased acceptance in many areas including oil & gas production monitoring, gyroscopes, current sensors, structural sensing and monitoring, and aerospace applications. High level optical and mechanical reliability of optical fiber is necessary to guarantee reliable performance of FOS. In this paper, we review recent research and development activities on new specialty fibers. We discuss fiber design concepts and present both modeling and experimental results. The main approaches to enhancing fiber attributes include new index profile design and fiber coating modification.

Fiber optic strain and temperature sensor for power plant applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Narendran, Nadarajah; Weiss, Joseph M.

1996-01-01

The applicability of fiber-optic strain and temperature sensors to monitor power plant structures was evaluated on a super-heated steam pipe operating at 1000 degree(s)F at the Tennessee Valley Authority power plant in Kingston, Tennessee. The potential applications of these fiber-optic sensors include health monitoring of high-temperature structures such as boilers, tube headers, and steam pipes, as well as many other power plant structures exposed to less severe environments. The sensor selected for this application is based on a white-light interferometric technique. The key features of this sensor include its ability for absolute measurements that are not affected by light loss along the fiber cable due to, for example, microbending effects and coupler loss, its compatibility with off-the-shelf fiber-optic components, and its low cost. The glass fiber-optic strain sensors were packaged in a rugged metal housing and were spot welded to the high-temperature steam pipe. Another set of gages was placed inside a thermowell for steam temperature measurement. Data collected during a routine start-up is very encouraging and the details are presented in this manuscript.

Optical fiber sensors embedded in flexible polymer foils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van Hoe, Bram; van Steenberge, Geert; Bosman, Erwin; Missinne, Jeroen; Geernaert, Thomas; Berghmans, Francis; Webb, David; van Daele, Peter

2010-04-01

In traditional electrical sensing applications, multiplexing and interconnecting the different sensing elements is a major challenge. Recently, many optical alternatives have been investigated including optical fiber sensors of which the sensing elements consist of fiber Bragg gratings. Different sensing points can be integrated in one optical fiber solving the interconnection problem and avoiding any electromagnetical interference (EMI). Many new sensing applications also require flexible or stretchable sensing foils which can be attached to or wrapped around irregularly shaped objects such as robot fingers and car bumpers or which can even be applied in biomedical applications where a sensor is fixed on a human body. The use of these optical sensors however always implies the use of a light-source, detectors and electronic circuitry to be coupled and integrated with these sensors. The coupling of these fibers with these light sources and detectors is a critical packaging problem and as it is well-known the costs for packaging, especially with optoelectronic components and fiber alignment issues are huge. The end goal of this embedded sensor is to create a flexible optical sensor integrated with (opto)electronic modules and control circuitry. To obtain this flexibility, one can embed the optical sensors and the driving optoelectronics in a stretchable polymer host material. In this article different embedding techniques for optical fiber sensors are described and characterized. Initial tests based on standard manufacturing processes such as molding and laser structuring are reported as well as a more advanced embedding technique based on soft lithography processing.

Toward Optical Sensors: Review and Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sabri, Naseer; Aljunid, S. A.; Salim, M. S.; Ahmad, R. B.; Kamaruddin, R.

2013-04-01

Recent advances in fiber optics (FOs) and the numerous advantages of light over electronic systems have boosted the utility and demand for optical sensors in various military, industry and social fields. Environmental and atmospheric monitoring, earth and space sciences, industrial chemical processing and biotechnology, law enforcement, digital imaging, scanning, and printing are exemplars of them. The ubiquity of photonic technologies could drive down prices which reduced the cost of optical fibers and lasers. Fiber optic sensors (FOSs) offer a wide spectrum of advantages over traditional sensing systems, such as small size and longer lifetime. Immunity to electromagnetic interference, amenability to multiplexing, and high sensitivity make FOs the sensor technology of choice in several fields, including the healthcare and aerospace sectors. FOSs show reliable and rigid sensing tasks over conventional electrical and electronic sensors. This paper presents an executive review of optical fiber sensors and the most beneficial applications.

Role of optical computers in aeronautical control applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baumbick, R. J.

1981-01-01

The role that optical computers play in aircraft control is determined. The optical computer has the potential high speed capability required, especially for matrix/matrix operations. The optical computer also has the potential for handling nonlinear simulations in real time. They are also more compatible with fiber optic signal transmission. Optics also permit the use of passive sensors to measure process variables. No electrical energy need be supplied to the sensor. Complex interfacing between optical sensors and the optical computer is avoided if the optical sensor outputs can be directly processed by the optical computer.

Emerging technology in fiber optic sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dyott, Richard B.

1991-03-01

Some recent innovations in interferoinetric fiber optic sensors include special fibers new components and sensor systems. Many of the concepts have precedents in microwaves. 1. GENERAL PRINCIPLES The application of optical fibers to sensors is diffuse compared with their application to optical communications which is essentially focused on the single problem of how to get information from A to B. A fiber sensor is viable when it can do something not possible with better than more cheaply than any existing method. The probability of the emergence of a new sensor depends on the length of time that a need for the sensor and the possibility of meeting that need have co-existed regardless of whether the need or the possibility has appeared first. 2. TYPES OF SENSOR Fiber sensors can be divided into: a) Multimode fiber sensors which depend on amplitude effects b) Single mode (single path) fiber sensors which depend on phase effects. Since multimode fiber has existed for many decades the emergence of a new multimode sensor depends mostly on the discovery of a new need for such a sensor. On the other hand single mode/single path (i. e. polarization maintaining) fiber is relatively new and so is still being applied to existing needs. This is particularly so of recent innovations in fibers and components. SPIE Vol. 1396 Applications of Optical Engineering Proceedings of OE/Midwest ''90 / 709

Fiber-Optic/Photoelastic Flow Sensors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wesson, Laurence N.; Cabato, Nellie L.; Brooks, Edward F.

1995-01-01

Simple, rugged, lightweight transducers detect periodic vortices. Fiber-optic-coupled transducers developed to measure flows over wide dynamic ranges and over wide temperature ranges in severe environments. Used to measure flows of fuel in advanced aircraft engines. Feasibility of sensors demonstrated in tests of prototype sensor in water flowing at various temperatures and speeds. Particularly attractive for aircraft applications because optical fibers compact and make possible transmission of sensor signals at high rates with immunity from electromagnetic interference at suboptical frequencies. Sensors utilize optical-to-optical conversion via photoelastic effect.

Distributed Fiber-Optic Sensors for Vibration Detection

PubMed Central

Liu, Xin; Jin, Baoquan; Bai, Qing; Wang, Yu; Wang, Dong; Wang, Yuncai

2016-01-01

Distributed fiber-optic vibration sensors receive extensive investigation and play a significant role in the sensor panorama. Optical parameters such as light intensity, phase, polarization state, or light frequency will change when external vibration is applied on the sensing fiber. In this paper, various technologies of distributed fiber-optic vibration sensing are reviewed, from interferometric sensing technology, such as Sagnac, Mach–Zehnder, and Michelson, to backscattering-based sensing technology, such as phase-sensitive optical time domain reflectometer, polarization-optical time domain reflectometer, optical frequency domain reflectometer, as well as some combinations of interferometric and backscattering-based techniques. Their operation principles are presented and recent research efforts are also included. Finally, the applications of distributed fiber-optic vibration sensors are summarized, which mainly include structural health monitoring and perimeter security, etc. Overall, distributed fiber-optic vibration sensors possess the advantages of large-scale monitoring, good concealment, excellent flexibility, and immunity to electromagnetic interference, and thus show considerable potential for a variety of practical applications. PMID:27472334

Distributed Fiber-Optic Sensors for Vibration Detection.

PubMed

Liu, Xin; Jin, Baoquan; Bai, Qing; Wang, Yu; Wang, Dong; Wang, Yuncai

2016-07-26

Distributed fiber-optic vibration sensors receive extensive investigation and play a significant role in the sensor panorama. Optical parameters such as light intensity, phase, polarization state, or light frequency will change when external vibration is applied on the sensing fiber. In this paper, various technologies of distributed fiber-optic vibration sensing are reviewed, from interferometric sensing technology, such as Sagnac, Mach-Zehnder, and Michelson, to backscattering-based sensing technology, such as phase-sensitive optical time domain reflectometer, polarization-optical time domain reflectometer, optical frequency domain reflectometer, as well as some combinations of interferometric and backscattering-based techniques. Their operation principles are presented and recent research efforts are also included. Finally, the applications of distributed fiber-optic vibration sensors are summarized, which mainly include structural health monitoring and perimeter security, etc. Overall, distributed fiber-optic vibration sensors possess the advantages of large-scale monitoring, good concealment, excellent flexibility, and immunity to electromagnetic interference, and thus show considerable potential for a variety of practical applications.

Hybrid photonic signal processing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ghauri, Farzan Naseer

This thesis proposes research of novel hybrid photonic signal processing systems in the areas of optical communications, test and measurement, RF signal processing and extreme environment optical sensors. It will be shown that use of innovative hybrid techniques allows design of photonic signal processing systems with superior performance parameters and enhanced capabilities. These applications can be divided into domains of analog-digital hybrid signal processing applications and free-space---fiber-coupled hybrid optical sensors. The analog-digital hybrid signal processing applications include a high-performance analog-digital hybrid MEMS variable optical attenuator that can simultaneously provide high dynamic range as well as high resolution attenuation controls; an analog-digital hybrid MEMS beam profiler that allows high-power watt-level laser beam profiling and also provides both submicron-level high resolution and wide area profiling coverage; and all optical transversal RF filters that operate on the principle of broadband optical spectral control using MEMS and/or Acousto-Optic tunable Filters (AOTF) devices which can provide continuous, digital or hybrid signal time delay and weight selection. The hybrid optical sensors presented in the thesis are extreme environment pressure sensors and dual temperature-pressure sensors. The sensors employ hybrid free-space and fiber-coupled techniques for remotely monitoring a system under simultaneous extremely high temperatures and pressures.

High-performance optical projection controllable ZnO nanorod arrays for microweighing sensors.

PubMed

Wang, Hongbo; Jiang, Shulan; Zhang, Lei; Yu, Bingjun; Chen, Duoli; Yang, Weiqing; Qian, Linmao

2018-03-08

Optical microweighing sensors are an essential component of micro-force measurements in physical, chemical, and biological detection fields, although, their limited detection range (less than 15°) severely hinders their wide application. Such a limitation is mainly attributed to the essential restrictions of traditional light reflection and optical waveguide modes. Here, we report a high-performance optical microweighing sensor based on the synergistic effects of both a new optical projection mode and a ZnO nanorod array sensor. Ascribed to the unique configuration design of this sensing method, this optical microweighing sensor has a wide detection range (more than 80°) and a high sensitivity of 90 nA deg -1 , which is much larger than that of conventional microcantilever-based optical microweighing sensors. Furthermore, the location of the UV light source can be adjusted within a few millimeters, meaning that the microweighing sensor does not need repetitive optical calibration. More importantly, for low height and small incident angles of the UV light source, we can obtain highly sensitive microweighing properties on account of the highly sensitive ZnO nanorod array-based UV sensor. Therefore, this kind of large detection range, non-contact, and non-destructive microweighing sensor has potential applications in air quality monitoring and chemical and biological detection.

Fiber-Optic Ultrasound Sensors for Smart Structures Applications

DTIC Science & Technology

2000-01-25

Introduction 1 1.1 Objectives 1 1.2 Relevance to Air Force 1 1.3 Fiber Optics Ultrasound Sensors 2 2. Research Accomplishments 2 2.1 Fabry - Perot ...fiber-optic ultrasound receivers: - Fabry - Perot (FOFP) sensors, - Sagnac Ultrasound Sensor (SUS), and - Bragg-Grating Ultrasound (BGU) sensors. We...ultrasound receivers with excellent normal-incidence response can be configured as local ( Fabry - Perot ) or non-local (Sagnac) sensors. The Sagnac

Fiber optical sensors for aircraft applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pechstedt, Ralf D.

2014-09-01

In this paper selected fiber optical point sensors that are of potential interest for deployment in aircraft are discussed. The operating principles together with recent measurement results are described. Examples include a high-temperature combined pressure and temperature sensor for engine health, hydraulics and landing gear monitoring, an ultra-high sensitive pressure sensor for oil, pneumatic and fluid aero systems applications and a combined acceleration and temperature sensor for condition monitoring of rotating components.

A Mechanical Switch Using Spectral Microshifts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mitchell, Gordon L.; Saaski, Elric W.; Hartl, James C.

1989-02-01

Among the simplest fiber optic sensors, are those which operate in a binary fashion; they were the first sensor types to be developed. Early experiments with fiber bundles and shutters produced demonstrations of, for example, displacement sensors. Typical applications range from position sensing for aircraft landing gear to counting objects on a production line. Because they frequently replace electrical snap action switches, binary sensors are generally called optical switches. Optical switch applications account for a much larger market than the more complex analog measurements discussed in the balance of this volume. This paper presents an optical switch concept that uses a single fiber and is tolerant of back reflections. The sensor element is a low finesse Fabry-Perot pressure sensor which replaces the electrical contact in a conventional snap action switch.

A fiber-optic current sensor for aerospace applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Patterson, Richard L.; Rose, A. H.; Tang, D.; Day, G. W.

1990-01-01

A robust, accurate, broad-band, alternating current sensor using fiber optics is being developed for space applications at power frequencies as high as 20 kHz. It can also be used in low and high voltage 60 Hz terrestrial power systems and in 400 Hz aircraft systems. It is intrinsically electromagnetic interference (EMI) immune and has the added benefit of excellent isolation. The sensor uses the Faraday effect in optical fiber and standard polarimetric measurements to sense electrical current. The primary component of the sensor is a specially treated coil of single-mode optical fiber, through which the current carrying conductor passes. Improved precision is accomplished by temperature compensation by means of signals from a novel fiber-optic temperature sensor embedded in the sensing head. The technology contained in the sensor is examined and the results of precision tests conducted at various temperatures within the wide operating range are given. The results of early EMI tests are also given.

A fiber-optic current sensor for aerospace applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Patterson, Richard L.; Rose, A. H.; Tang, D.; Day, G. W.

1990-01-01

A robust, accurate, broadband, alternating current sensor using fiber optics is being developed for space applications at power frequencies as high as 20 kHz. It can also be used in low and high voltage 60-Hz terrestrial power systems and in 400-Hz aircraft systems. It is intrinsically electromagnetic interference (EMI) immune and has the added benefit of excellent isolation. The sensor uses the Faraday effect in optical fiber and standard polarimetric measurements to sense electrical current. The primary component of the sensor is a specially treated coil of single-mode optical fiber, through which the current carrying conductor passes. Improved precision is accomplished by temperature compensation by means of signals from a novel fiber-optic temperature sensor embedded in the sensing head. The technology used in the sensor is examined and the results of precision tests conducted at various temperatures within the wide operating range are given. The results of early EMI tests are also given.

A fiber-optic current sensor for aerospace applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Patterson, Richard L.; Rose, A. H.; Tang, D.; Day, G. W.

1990-01-01

A robust, accurate, broadband, alternating current sensor using fiber optics is being developed for space applications at power frequencies as high as 20 kHz. It can also be used in low- and high-voltage 60-Hz terrestrial power systems and in 400-Hz aircraft systems. It is intrinsically EMI (electromagnetic interference) immune and has the added benefit of excellent isolation. The sensor uses the Faraday effect in optical fiber and standard polarimetric measurements to sense electrical current. The primary component of the sensor is a specially treated coil of single-mode optical fiber, through which the current carrying conductor passes. Improved precision is accomplished by temperature compensation by means of signals from a fiber-optic temperature sensor embedded in the sensing head. The authors report on the technology contained in the sensor and also relate the results of precision tests conducted at various temperatures within the wide operating range. The results of early EMI tests are shown.

Electro-optic architecture for servicing sensors and actuators in advanced aircraft propulsion systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Poppel, G. L.; Glasheen, W. M.

1989-01-01

A detailed design of a fiber optic propulsion control system, integrating favored sensors and electro-optics architecture is presented. Layouts, schematics, and sensor lists describe an advanced fighter engine system model. Components and attributes of candidate fiber optic sensors are identified, and evaluation criteria are used in a trade study resulting in favored sensors for each measurand. System architectural ground rules were applied to accomplish an electro-optics architecture for the favored sensors. A key result was a considerable reduction in signal conductors. Drawings, schematics, specifications, and printed circuit board layouts describe the detailed system design, including application of a planar optical waveguide interface.

Microshell-tipped optical fibers as sensors of high-pressure pulses in adverse environments

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Benjamin, R.F.; Mayer, F.J.; Maynard, R.L.

1984-01-01

An optical-fiber sensor for detecting the arrival of strong pressure pulses was developed. The sensor consists of an optical fiber, tipped with a gas-filled microballoon. They have been used successfully in adverse environments including explosives, ballistics and electromagnetic pulses (EMP). The sensor produces a bright optical pulse caused by the rapid shock-heating of a gas, typically argon or xenon, which is confined in the spherical glass or plastic microballoon. The light pulse is transmitted via the optical fiber to a photo detector, usually a streak camera or photomultiplier tube. The microballoon optical sensor (called an optical pin by analogy tomore » standard electrical pins), was originally developed for diagnosing an explosive, pulsed-power generator. Optical pins are required due to the EMP. The optical pins are economical arrival-time indicators because many channels can be recorded by one streak camera. The generator tests and related experiments, involving projectile velocities and detonation velocities of several kilometers per sec have demonstrated the usefulness of the sensors in explosives and ballistics applications. The technical and cost advantages of this optical pin make it potentially useful for many electromagnetic, explosive, and ballistics applications.« less

Development and Performance Evaluation of Optical Sensors for High Temperature Engine Applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Adamovsky, G.; Varga, D.; Floyd, B.

2011-01-01

This paper discusses fiber optic sensors designed and constructed to withstand extreme temperatures of aircraft engine. The paper describes development and performance evaluation of fiber optic Bragg grating based sensors. It also describes the design and presents test results of packaged sensors subjected to temperatures up to 1000 C for prolonged periods of time.

Packaging optical sensors for the real world

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kachmar, Wayne; Nardone, Kenneth C.

2007-09-01

Optical fiber based sensing has now moved from laboratory demonstrations to actual applications in the real world. This has necessitated an entirely new area of extrusion - the packaging (cabling) of optical fibers and sensor arrays to protect them from the intended environment and installation handling while not masking or attenuating the phenomenon that is being sensed. Although each application presents new and unique challenges, the goal is to create a packaging concept for fiber sensors. Fiber sensing applications can be narrowed down to the five items below: 1. Conventional cable packages 2. Assembled (typically by hand) discrete sensor packages 3. Package enhanced sensors (where the packaging improves the effect of the sensor) 4. Linear sensor installation packaging 5. Scalar packaging (where the cabling adds to the range of the sensor) The above applications can be accomplished in a number of ways, and methods are still being developed in this relatively new science. Some of the new technology methods being explored include: UV cured liquids; Voided space cores; Conventional cable extrusion & its determination of mechanical characteristics. This paper reviews the pluses and minuses of the above methods and how their combination ultimately determines how the fiber or sensor array is to be jacketed in order to meet the specific application requirements. This paper will also review non-standard material characteristics, strength members and their role in measuring strain and stress values along with the overall influence of packaging on optical fibers and sensor arrays.

Development of optical FBG force measurement system for the medical application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, Hoseok; Kim, Kiyoung; Suh, Jungwook; Lee, Jungju

2010-03-01

Haptic feedback plays a very important role in medical surgery. In minimally invasive surgery (MIS), however, very long and stiff bar of instruments take haptic feeling away from the surgeon. In minimally invasive robotic surgery (MIRS), moreover, haptic feelings are totally eliminated. Previous researchers have reported that the absence of force feedback increased the average force magnitude applied to the tissue by at least 50%, and increased the peakforce magnitude by at least a factor of two. Therefore, it is very important to provide haptic information in MIRS. Recently, many sensors are being developed for MIS or MIRS, but they have some obstacles in their application to real situations of medical surgery. The most critical problems are size limit and sterilizability. Optical fiber sensors are one of the most suitable sensors for this environment. Especially, optical fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensor has one additional advantage than the other optical fiber sensors. FBG sensor is not influenced by intensity of light source. In this paper, we would like to present the initial results of study on the application of the FBG sensor to measure reflected forces in MIRS environments and then suggest the possibility of successful application to the MIRS systems.

Development of optical FBG force measurement system for the medical application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, Hoseok; Kim, Kiyoung; Suh, Jungwook; Lee, Jungju

2009-12-01

Haptic feedback plays a very important role in medical surgery. In minimally invasive surgery (MIS), however, very long and stiff bar of instruments take haptic feeling away from the surgeon. In minimally invasive robotic surgery (MIRS), moreover, haptic feelings are totally eliminated. Previous researchers have reported that the absence of force feedback increased the average force magnitude applied to the tissue by at least 50%, and increased the peakforce magnitude by at least a factor of two. Therefore, it is very important to provide haptic information in MIRS. Recently, many sensors are being developed for MIS or MIRS, but they have some obstacles in their application to real situations of medical surgery. The most critical problems are size limit and sterilizability. Optical fiber sensors are one of the most suitable sensors for this environment. Especially, optical fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensor has one additional advantage than the other optical fiber sensors. FBG sensor is not influenced by intensity of light source. In this paper, we would like to present the initial results of study on the application of the FBG sensor to measure reflected forces in MIRS environments and then suggest the possibility of successful application to the MIRS systems.

Recent developments of optical fiber chemical sensors at IROE

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baldini, Francesco

2002-02-01

An overview is given on the activity in progress at IROE, relative to the field of optical fibre sensors for chemical parameters. Optode-based sensors are under development for both biomedical and environmental applications. As for the biomedical field, particular attention will be devoted to clinical applications of the developed sensor in gastroenterology. The first clinical applications of an absorption-based sensor for the detection of gastric carbon dioxide will be described. Clinical results have shown the superiority of the developed sensor over the sensor currently available on the market and based on air tonometry. New clinical findings involving a sensor for the detection of bile will be also discussed. As far as environmental applications are concerned, an optode for the detection of nitrogen dioxide will be described.

Fabrication of fiber-optic localized surface plasmon resonance sensor and its application to detect antibody-antigen reaction of interferon-gamma

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jeong, Hyeon-Ho; Erdene, Norov; Lee, Seung-Ki; Jeong, Dae-Hong; Park, Jae-Hyoung

2011-12-01

A fiber-optic localized surface plasmon (FO LSPR) sensor was fabricated by gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) immobilized on the end-face of an optical fiber. When Au NPs were formed on the end-face of an optical fiber by chemical reaction, Au NPs aggregation occurred and the Au NPs were immobilized in various forms such as monomers, dimers, trimers, etc. The component ratio of the Au NPs on the end-face of the fabricated FO LSPR sensor was slightly changed whenever the sensors were fabricated in the same condition. Including this phenomenon, the FO LSPR sensor was fabricated with high sensitivity by controlling the density of Au NPs. Also, the fabricated sensors were measured for the resonance intensity for the different optical systems and analyzed for the effect on sensitivity. Finally, for application as a biosensor, the sensor was used for detecting the antibody-antigen reaction of interferon-gamma.

Optical Fiber-Tip Sensors Based on In-Situ µ-Printed Polymer Suspended-Microbeams.

PubMed

Yao, Mian; Ouyang, Xia; Wu, Jushuai; Zhang, A Ping; Tam, Hwa-Yaw; Wai, P K A

2018-06-05

Miniature optical fiber-tip sensors based on directly µ-printed polymer suspended-microbeams are presented. With an in-house optical 3D μ-printing technology, SU-8 suspended-microbeams are fabricated in situ to form Fabry⁻Pérot (FP) micro-interferometers on the end face of standard single-mode optical fiber. Optical reflection spectra of the fabricated FP micro-interferometers are measured and fast Fourier transform is applied to analyze the cavity of micro-interferometers. The applications of the optical fiber-tip sensors for refractive index (RI) sensing and pressure sensing, which showed 917.3 nm/RIU to RI change and 4.29 nm/MPa to pressure change, respectively, are demonstrated in the experiments. The sensors and their optical µ-printing method unveil a new strategy to integrate complicated microcomponents on optical fibers toward 'lab-on-fiber' devices and applications.

Research Progress on F-P Interference—Based Fiber-Optic Sensors

PubMed Central

Huang, Yi Wen; Tao, Jin; Huang, Xu Guang

2016-01-01

We review our works on Fabry-Perot (F-P) interferometric fiber-optic sensors with various applications. We give a general model of F-P interferometric optical fiber sensors including diffraction loss caused by the beam divergence and the Gouy phase shift. Based on different structures of an F-P cavity formed on the end of a single-mode fiber, the F-P interferometric optical sensor has been extended to measurements of the refractive index (RI) of liquids and solids, temperature as well as small displacement. The RI of liquids and solids can be obtained by monitoring the fringe contrast related to Fresnel reflections, while the ambient temperature and small displacement can be obtained by monitoring the wavelength shift of the interference fringes. The F-P interferometric fiber-optic sensors can be used for many scientific and technological applications. PMID:27598173

Low-Cost Linear Optical Sensors.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kinsey, Kenneth F.; Meisel, David D.

1994-01-01

Discusses the properties and application of three light-to-voltage optical sensors. The sensors have been used for sensing diffraction patterns, the inverse-square law, and as a fringe counter with an interferometer. (MVL)

Triaxial fiber optic magnetic field sensor for MRI applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Filograno, Massimo L.; Pisco, Marco; Catalano, Angelo; Forte, Ernesto; Aiello, Marco; Soricelli, Andrea; Davino, Daniele; Visone, Ciro; Cutolo, Antonello; Cusano, Andrea

2016-05-01

In this paper, we report a fiber-optic triaxial magnetic field sensor, based on Fiber Bragg Gratings (FBGs) integrated with giant magnetostrictive material, the Terfenol-D. The realized sensor has been designed and engineered for Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) applications. A full magneto-optical characterization of the triaxial sensing probe has been carried out, providing the complex relationship among the FBGs wavelength shift and the applied magnetostatic field vector. Finally, the developed fiber optic sensors have been arranged in a sensor network composed of 20 triaxial sensors for mapping the magnetic field distribution in a MRI-room at a diagnostic center in Naples (SDN), equipped with Positron emission tomography/magnetic resonance (PET/MR) instrumentation. Experimental results reveal that the proposed sensor network can be efficiently used in MRI centers for performing quality assurance tests, paving the way for novel integrated tools to measure the magnetic dose accumulated day by day by MRI operators.

Recent developments of genetically encoded optical sensors for cell biology.

PubMed

Bolbat, Andrey; Schultz, Carsten

2017-01-01

Optical sensors are powerful tools for live cell research as they permit to follow the location, concentration changes or activities of key cellular players such as lipids, ions and enzymes. Most of the current sensor probes are based on fluorescence which provides great spatial and temporal precision provided that high-end microscopy is used and that the timescale of the event of interest fits the response time of the sensor. Many of the sensors developed in the past 20 years are genetically encoded. There is a diversity of designs leading to simple or sometimes complicated applications for the use in live cells. Genetically encoded sensors began to emerge after the discovery of fluorescent proteins, engineering of their improved optical properties and the manipulation of their structure through application of circular permutation. In this review, we will describe a variety of genetically encoded biosensor concepts, including those for intensiometric and ratiometric sensors based on single fluorescent proteins, Forster resonance energy transfer-based sensors, sensors utilising bioluminescence, sensors using self-labelling SNAP- and CLIP-tags, and finally tetracysteine-based sensors. We focus on the newer developments and discuss the current approaches and techniques for design and application. This will demonstrate the power of using optical sensors in cell biology and will help opening the field to more systematic applications in the future. © 2016 Société Française des Microscopies and Société de Biologie Cellulaire de France. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Sensors, Volume 1, Fundamentals and General Aspects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grandke, Thomas; Ko, Wen H.

1996-12-01

'Sensors' is the first self-contained series to deal with the whole area of sensors. It describes general aspects, technical and physical fundamentals, construction, function, applications and developments of the various types of sensors. This volume deals with the fundamentals and common principles of sensors and covers the wide areas of principles, technologies, signal processing, and applications. Contents include: Sensor Fundamentals, e.g. Sensor Parameters, Modeling, Design and Packaging; Basic Sensor Technologies, e.g. Thin and Thick Films, Integrated Magnetic Sensors, Optical Fibres and Intergrated Optics, Ceramics and Oxides; Sensor Interfaces, e.g. Signal Processing, Multisensor Signal Processing, Smart Sensors, Interface Systems; Sensor Applications, e.g. Automotive: On-board Sensors, Traffic Surveillance and Control, Home Appliances, Environmental Monitoring, etc. This volume is an indispensable reference work and text book for both specialits and newcomers, researchers and developers.

An Optical Fibre Depth (Pressure) Sensor for Remote Operated Vehicles in Underwater Applications

PubMed Central

Duraibabu, Dinesh Babu; Poeggel, Sven; Omerdic, Edin; Capocci, Romano; Lewis, Elfed; Newe, Thomas; Leen, Gabriel; Toal, Daniel; Dooly, Gerard

2017-01-01

A miniature sensor for accurate measurement of pressure (depth) with temperature compensation in the ocean environment is described. The sensor is based on an optical fibre Extrinsic Fabry-Perot interferometer (EFPI) combined with a Fibre Bragg Grating (FBG). The EFPI provides pressure measurements while the Fibre Bragg Grating (FBG) provides temperature measurements. The sensor is mechanically robust, corrosion-resistant and suitable for use in underwater applications. The combined pressure and temperature sensor system was mounted on-board a mini remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV) in order to monitor the pressure changes at various depths. The reflected optical spectrum from the sensor was monitored online and a pressure or temperature change caused a corresponding observable shift in the received optical spectrum. The sensor exhibited excellent stability when measured over a 2 h period underwater and its performance is compared with a commercially available reference sensor also mounted on the ROV. The measurements illustrates that the EFPI/FBG sensor is more accurate for depth measurements (depth of ~0.020 m). PMID:28218727

Fingertip-shaped optical tactile sensor for robotic applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Begej, Stefan

1988-01-01

Progress is described regarding the development of a high-density, fiber-optic, fingertip-shaped tactile sensor specifically designed for application to dexterous robotics. The sensor operates on optical principles involving the frustration of total internal reflection at a waveguide/elastomer interface and generates a grey-scale tactile image that represents the normal forces of contact. The sensor contains 256 taxels (sensing sites) distributed in a dual-density pattern that includes a tactile fovea near the tip which measures 13 mm x 13 mm and contains 169 taxels. The details regarding the design and construction of this tactile sensor are presented, in addition to photographs of tactile imprints.

Performance of a compact, hybrid optical evanescent-wave sensor for chemical and biological applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Helmers, H.; Greco, Pierre; Benech, Pierre; Rustad, Rolf; Kherrat, Rochdi; Bouvier, Gérard

1996-02-01

We describe a hybrid evanescent-wave sensor component that we fabricated by using an integrated optical interferometer with a specially adapted photodetector array. The design of the interferometer is based on the use of tapered waveguides to obtain two intersecting collimated beams. Phase shifts can be measured with an angular precision of better than 10-3 rad, which corresponds to a superstrate index change inferior of 10-6 with our structure. The interest in the device as a chemical sensor is experimentally demonstrated. The same optical component could be used in a variety of other sensor applications, e.g., biological and immunological sensors.

Fiber optic sensors for sub-centimeter spatially resolved measurements: Review and biomedical applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tosi, Daniele; Schena, Emiliano; Molardi, Carlo; Korganbayev, Sanzhar

2018-07-01

One of the current frontier of optical fiber sensors, and a unique asset of this sensing technology is the possibility to use a whole optical fiber, or optical fiber device, as a sensor. This solution allows shifting the whole sensing paradigm, from the measurement of a single physical parameter (such as temperature, strain, vibrations, pressure) to the measurement of a spatial distribution, or profiling, of a physical parameter along the fiber length. In the recent years, several technologies are achieving this task with unprecedentedly narrow spatial resolution, ranging from the sub-millimeter to the centimeter-level. In this work, we review the main fiber optic sensing technologies that achieve a narrow spatial resolution: Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG) dense arrays, chirped FBG (CFBG) sensors, optical frequency domain reflectometry (OFDR) based on either Rayleigh scattering or reflective elements, and microwave photonics (MWP). In the second part of the work, we present the impact of spatially dense fiber optic sensors in biomedical applications, where they find the main impact, presenting the key results obtained in thermo-therapies monitoring, high-resolution diagnostic, catheters monitoring, smart textiles, and other emerging applicative fields.

Fundamental concepts of integrated and fiber optic sensors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tuma, Margaret L.

1995-01-01

This chapter discusses fiber optic and integrated optic sensor concepts. Unfortunately, there is no standard method to categorize these sensor concepts. Here, fiber optic and integrated optic sensor concepts will be categorized by the primary modulation technique. These modulation techniques have been classified as: intensity, phase, wavelength, polarization, and time/frequency modulation. All modulate the output light with respect to changes in the physical or chemical property to be measured. Each primary modulation technique is then divided into fiber optic and integrated optic sections which are treated independently. For each sensor concept, possible sensor applications are discussed. The sensors and references discussed are not exhaustive, but sufficient to give the reader an overview of sensor concepts developed to date. Sensor multiplexing techniques such as wavelength division, time division, and frequency division will not be discussed as they are beyond the scope of this report.

An acousto-optic sensor based on resonance grating waveguide structure

PubMed Central

Xie, Antonio Jou; Song, Fuchuan; Seo, Sang-Woo

2014-01-01

This paper presents an acousto-optic (AO) sensor based on resonance grating waveguide structure. The sensor is fabricated using elastic polymer materials to achieve a good sensitivity to ultrasound pressure waves. Ultrasound pressure waves modify the structural parameters of the sensor and result in the optical resonance shift of the sensor. This converts into a light intensity modulation. A commercial ultrasound transducer at 20 MHz is used to characterize a fabricated sensor and detection sensitivity at different optical source wavelength within a resonance spectrum is investigated. Practical use of the sensor at a fixed optical source wavelength is presented. Ultimately, the geometry of the planar sensor structure is suitable for two-dimensional, optical pressure imaging applications such as pressure wave detection and mapping, and ultrasound imaging. PMID:25045203

Fiber optic sensors for corrosion detection

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, Alphonso C.

1993-01-01

The development of fiber optic sensors for the detection of a variety of material parameters has grown tremendously over the past several years. Additionally, the potential for analytical applications of fiber optic sensors have become more widely used. New pH sensors have also been developed using fiber optic techniques to detect fluorescence characteristics from immobilized fluorogenic reagent chemicals. The primary purpose of this research was to investigate the feasibility of using fiber optic sensors to detect the presence of Al(sup 3+) ions made in the process of environmental corrosion of aluminum materials. The Al(sup 3+) ions plus a variety of other type of metal ions can be detected using analytical techniques along with fiber optic sensors.

Recycling microcavity optical biosensors.

PubMed

Hunt, Heather K; Armani, Andrea M

2011-04-01

Optical biosensors have tremendous potential for commercial applications in medical diagnostics, environmental monitoring, and food safety evaluation. In these applications, sensor reuse is desirable to reduce costs. To achieve this, harsh, wet chemistry treatments are required to remove surface chemistry from the sensor, typically resulting in reduced sensor performance and increased noise due to recognition moiety and optical transducer degradation. In the present work, we suggest an alternative, dry-chemistry method, based on O₂ plasma treatment. This approach is compatible with typical fabrication of substrate-based optical transducers. This treatment completely removes the recognition moiety, allowing the transducer surface to be refreshed with new recognition elements and thus enabling the sensor to be recycled.

Time-domain fiber loop ringdown sensor and sensor network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaya, Malik

Optical fibers have been mostly used in fiber optic communications, imaging optics, sensing technology, etc. Fiber optic sensors have gained increasing attention for scientific and structural health monitoring (SHM) applications. In this study, fiber loop ringdown (FLRD) sensors were fabricated for scientific, SHM, and sensor networking applications. FLRD biosensors were fabricated for both bulk refractive index (RI)- and surface RI-based DNA sensing and one type of bacteria sensing. Furthermore, the effect of glucose oxidase (GOD) immobilization at the sensor head on sensor performance was evaluated for both glucose and synthetic urine solutions with glucose concentration between 0.1% and 10%. Detection sensitivities of the glucose sensors were achieved as low as 0.05%. For chemical sensing, heavy water, ranging from 97% to 10%, and several elemental solutions were monitored by using the FLRD chemical sensors. Bulk index-based FLRD sensing showed that trace elements can be detected in deionized water. For physical sensing, water and cracking sensors were fabricated and embedded into concrete. A partially-etched single-mode fiber (SMF) was embedded into a concrete bar for water monitoring while a bare SMF without any treatment was directly embedded into another concrete bar for monitoring cracks. Furthermore, detection sensitivities of water and crack sensors were investigated as 10 ml water and 0.5 mm surface crack width, respectively. Additionally fiber loop ringdown-fiber Bragg grating temperature sensors were developed in the laboratory; two sensor units for water, crack, and temperature sensing were deployed into a concrete cube in a US Department of Energy test bed (Miami, FL). Multi-sensor applications in a real concrete structure were accomplished by testing the six FLRD sensors. As a final stage, a sensor network was assembled by multiplexing two or three FLRD sensors in series and parallel. Additionally, two FLRD sensors were combined in series and parallel by using a 2x1 micro-electromechanical system optical switch to control sensors individually. For both configurations, contributions of each sensor to two or three coupled signals were simulated theoretically. Results show that numerous FLRD sensors can be connected in different configurations, and a sensor network can be built up for multi-function sensing applications.

Optical Fiber Networks for Remote Fiber Optic Sensors

PubMed Central

Fernandez-Vallejo, Montserrat; Lopez-Amo, Manuel

2012-01-01

This paper presents an overview of optical fiber sensor networks for remote sensing. Firstly, the state of the art of remote fiber sensor systems has been considered. We have summarized the great evolution of these systems in recent years; this progress confirms that fiber-optic remote sensing is a promising technology with a wide field of practical applications. Afterwards, the most representative remote fiber-optic sensor systems are briefly explained, discussing their schemes, challenges, pros and cons. Finally, a synopsis of the main factors to take into consideration in the design of a remote sensor system is gathered. PMID:22666011

Realization of a fiber optic sensor detecting the presence of a liquid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guzowski, B.; Łakomski, M.; Nowogrodzki, K.

2016-11-01

Over the past thirty years, optical fibers have revolutionized the telecommunication market. Fiber optics play also important roles in other numerous applications. One of these applications is fiber sensing - very fast developing area. In this paper, realization of different configurations of a fiber optic sensor detecting the presence of liquid is presented. In the presented sensor, two multimode fibers (MMF) are placed opposite each other, where the first one transmits the light radiation, while the second one is a receiver. Due to the small size of the core (50 μm diameter), they had to be precisely positioned. Therefore the optical fibers were placed in the etched channels in the silicon substrate. In order to make sensors more sensitive, ball-lensed optical fibers were used. Four different diameters of lenses were examined. Sensitivity to the presence of liquids was compared in all realized sensors. Moreover, the influence of distance between the transmitting and receiving optical fiber on the received optical power is also described in this paper. All developed sensors were tested at 1300 nm wavelength. In the last part of this paper the detailed discussion is given.

Optoelectronic Capillary Sensors in Microfluidic and Point-of-Care Instrumentation

PubMed Central

Borecki, Michał; Korwin-Pawlowski, Michael L.; Beblowska, Maria; Szmidt, Jan; Jakubowski, Andrzej

2010-01-01

This paper presents a review, based on the published literature and on the authors’ own research, of the current state of the art of fiber-optic capillary sensors and related instrumentation as well as their applications, with special emphasis on point-of-care chemical and biochemical sensors, systematizing the various types of sensors from the point of view of the principles of their construction and operation. Unlike classical fiber-optic sensors which rely on changes in light propagation inside the fiber as affected by outside conditions, optical capillary sensors rely on changes of light transmission in capillaries filled with the analyzed liquid, which opens the possibility of interesting new applications, while raising specific issues relating to the construction, materials and instrumentation of those sensors. PMID:22319325

Absolute optical metrology : nanometers to kilometers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dubovitsky, Serge; Lay, O. P.; Peters, R. D.; Liebe, C. C.

2005-01-01

We provide and overview of the developments in the field of high-accuracy absolute optical metrology with emphasis on space-based applications. Specific work on the Modulation Sideband Technology for Absolute Ranging (MSTAR) sensor is described along with novel applications of the sensor.

Noncontacting Optical Measurement And Inspection Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Asher, Jeffrey A.; Jackson, Robert L.

1986-10-01

Product inspection continues to play a growing role in the improvement of quality and reduction of scrap. Recent emphasis on precision measurements and in-process inspection have been a driving force for the development of noncontacting sensors. Noncontacting sensors can provide long term, unattended use due to the lack of sensor wear. Further, in applications where, sensor contact can damage or geometrically change the part to be measured or inspected, noncontacting sensors are the only technical approach available. MTI is involved in the development and sale of noncontacting sensors and custom inspection systems. This paper will review the recent advances in noncontacting sensor development. Machine vision and fiber optics sensor systems are finding a wide variety of industrial inspection applications. This paper will provide detailed examples of several state-of-the-art applications for these noncontacting sensors.

Bioinspired Polarization Imaging Sensors: From Circuits and Optics to Signal Processing Algorithms and Biomedical Applications

PubMed Central

York, Timothy; Powell, Samuel B.; Gao, Shengkui; Kahan, Lindsey; Charanya, Tauseef; Saha, Debajit; Roberts, Nicholas W.; Cronin, Thomas W.; Marshall, Justin; Achilefu, Samuel; Lake, Spencer P.; Raman, Baranidharan; Gruev, Viktor

2015-01-01

In this paper, we present recent work on bioinspired polarization imaging sensors and their applications in biomedicine. In particular, we focus on three different aspects of these sensors. First, we describe the electro–optical challenges in realizing a bioinspired polarization imager, and in particular, we provide a detailed description of a recent low-power complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor (CMOS) polarization imager. Second, we focus on signal processing algorithms tailored for this new class of bioinspired polarization imaging sensors, such as calibration and interpolation. Third, the emergence of these sensors has enabled rapid progress in characterizing polarization signals and environmental parameters in nature, as well as several biomedical areas, such as label-free optical neural recording, dynamic tissue strength analysis, and early diagnosis of flat cancerous lesions in a murine colorectal tumor model. We highlight results obtained from these three areas and discuss future applications for these sensors. PMID:26538682

Development of Metal Oxide Nanostructure-based Optical Sensors for Fossil Fuel Derived Gases Measurement at High Temperature

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Chen, Kevin P.

2015-02-13

This final technical report details research works performed supported by a Department of Energy grant (DE-FE0003859), which was awarded under the University Coal Research Program administrated by National Energy Technology Laboratory. This research program studied high temperature fiber sensor for harsh environment applications. It developed two fiber optical sensor platform technology including regenerative fiber Bragg grating sensors and distributed fiber optical sensing based on Rayleigh backscattering optical frequency domain reflectometry. Through the studies of chemical and thermal regenerative techniques for fiber Bragg grating (FBG) fabrication, high-temperature stable FBG sensors were successfully developed and fabricated in air-hole microstructured fibers, high-attenuation fibers,more » rare-earth doped fibers, and standard telecommunication fibers. By optimizing the laser processing and thermal annealing procedures, fiber grating sensors with stable performance up to 1100°C have been developed. Using these temperature-stable FBG gratings as sensor platform, fiber optical flow, temperature, pressure, and chemical sensors have been developed to operate at high temperatures up to 800°C. Through the integration of on-fiber functional coating, the use of application-specific air-hole microstructural fiber, and application of active fiber sensing scheme, distributed fiber sensor for temperature, pressure, flow, liquid level, and chemical sensing have been demonstrated with high spatial resolution (1-cm or better) with wide temperature ranges. These include the demonstration of 1) liquid level sensing from 77K to the room temperature, pressure/temperature sensing from the room temperature to 800C and from the 15psi to 2000 psi, and hydrogen concentration measurement from 0.2% to 10% with temperature ranges from the room temperature to 700°C. Optical sensors developed by this program has broken several technical records including flow sensors with the highest operation temperature up to 750°C, first distributed chemical measurements at the record high temperature up to 700°C, first distributed pressure measurement at the record high temperature up to 800°C, and the fiber laser sensors with the record high operation temperature up to 700°C. The research performed by this program dramatically expand the functionality, adaptability, and applicability of distributed fiber optical sensors with potential applications in a number of high-temperature energy systems such as fossil-fuel power generation, high-temperature fuel cell applications, and potential for nuclear energy systems.« less

Micro optical fiber light source and sensor and method of fabrication thereof

DOEpatents

Kopelman, Raoul; Tan, Weihong; Shi, Zhong-You

1997-01-01

This invention relates generally to the development of and a method of fabricating a fiber optic micro-light source and sensor (50). An optical fiber micro-light source (50) is presented whose aperture is extremely small yet able to act as an intense light source. Light sources of this type have wide ranging applications, including use as micro-sensors (22) in NSOM. Micro-sensor light sources have excellent detection limits as well as photo stability, reversibility, and millisecond response times. Furthermore, a method for manufacturing a micro optical fiber light source is provided. It involves the photo-chemical attachment of an optically active material onto the end surface of an optical fiber cable which has been pulled to form an end with an extremely narrow aperture. More specifically, photopolymerization has been applied as a means to photo-chemically attach an optically active material (60). This process allows significant control of the size of the micro light source (50). Furthermore, photo-chemically attaching an optically active material (60) enables the implementation of the micro-light source in a variety of sensor applications.

Micro optical fiber light source and sensor and method of fabrication thereof

DOEpatents

Kopelman, R.; Tan, W.; Shi, Z.Y.

1997-05-06

This invention relates generally to the development of and a method of fabricating a fiber optic micro-light source and sensor. An optical fiber micro-light source is presented whose aperture is extremely small yet able to act as an intense light source. Light sources of this type have wide ranging applications, including use as micro-sensors in NSOM. Micro-sensor light sources have excellent detection limits as well as photo stability, reversibility, and millisecond response times. Furthermore, a method for manufacturing a micro optical fiber light source is provided. It involves the photo-chemical attachment of an optically active material onto the end surface of an optical fiber cable which has been pulled to form an end with an extremely narrow aperture. More specifically, photopolymerization has been applied as a means to photo-chemically attach an optically active material. This process allows significant control of the size of the micro light source. Furthermore, photo-chemically attaching an optically active material enables the implementation of the micro-light source in a variety of sensor applications. 10 figs.

Photonic crystal sensors: Physics and applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dinodiya, Sapna; Suthar, B.; Bhargava, A.

2018-05-01

Photonic sensors have evolved rapidly in last few decades because of the major requirement of sensing applications in optical communication and biomedical diagnostics. Photonic crystals are of tremendous use in designing photonic sensors. Any physical phenomenon, for instance temperature, pressure, strain, and presence of chemicals and bio molecules that can alter periodicity and refractive index of structure of the photonic crystal, can be sensed by measuring optical properties like spectral pattern of reflected and transmitted power. The physics and applications of various photonic crystal sensors are presented in this article.

Structural health monitoring using smart optical fiber sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Davies, Heddwyn; Everall, Lorna A.; Gallon, Andrew M.

2001-04-01

This paper describes the potential of a smart monitoring system, incorporating optical fiber sensing techniques, to provide important structural information to designers and users alike. This technology has application in all areas including aerospace, civil, maritime and automotive engineering. In order to demonstrate the capability of the sensing system it has been installed in a 35 m free-standing carbon fiber yacht mast, where a complete optical network of strain and temperature sensors were embedded into a composite mast and boom during lay-up. The system was able to monitor the behavior of the composite rig through a range of handling conditions and the resulting strain information could be used by engineers to improve the structural design process. The optical strain sensor system comprises of three main components: the sensor network, the opto-electronic data acquisition unit (OFSSS) and the external PC which acts as a data log and display. Embedded fiber optic sensors have wide ranging application for structural load monitoring. Due to their small size, optical fiber sensors can be readily embedded into composite materials. Other advantages include their immediate multiplexing capability and immunity to electromagnetic interference. The capability of this system has been demonstrated within the maritime environment, but can be adapted for any application.

Whispering-Gallery Mode Resonators for Detecting Cancer

PubMed Central

Pongruengkiat, Weeratouch; Pechprasarn, Suejit

2017-01-01

Optical resonators are sensors well known for their high sensitivity and fast response time. These sensors have a wide range of applications, including in the biomedical fields, and cancer detection is one such promising application. Sensor diagnosis currently has many limitations, such as being expensive, highly invasive, and time-consuming. New developments are welcomed to overcome these limitations. Optical resonators have high sensitivity, which enable medical testing to detect disease in the early stage. Herein, we describe the principle of whispering-gallery mode and ring optical resonators. We also add to the knowledge of cancer biomarker diagnosis, where we discuss the application of optical resonators for specific biomarkers. Lastly, we discuss advancements in optical resonators for detecting cancer in terms of their ability to detect small amounts of cancer biomarkers. PMID:28902169

Applications of Ionic Liquids for the Development of Optical Chemical Sensors and Biosensors.

PubMed

Muginova, Svetlana V; Myasnikova, Dina A; Kazarian, Sergei G; Shekhovtsova, Tatiana N

2017-01-01

This paper reviews the primary literature reporting the use of ionic liquids (ILs) in optical sensing technologies. The optical chemical sensors that have been developed with the assistance of ILs are classified according to the type of resultant material. Key aspects of applying ILs in such sensors are revealed and discussed. They include using ILs as solvents for the synthesis of sensor matrix materials; additives in polymer matrices; matrix materials; modifiers of the surfaces; and multifunctional sensor components. The operational principles, design, texture, and analytical characteristics of the offered sensors for determining CO 2 , O 2 , metal ions, CN - , and various organic compounds are critically discussed. The key advantages and disadvantages of using ILs in optical sensing technologies are defined. Finally, the applicability of the described materials for chemical analysis is evaluated, and possibilities for their further modernization are outlined.

Fibre-optic sensors in health care

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Grazia Mignani, Anna; Baldini, Francesco

1997-05-01

Biomedical fibre-optic sensors are attractive for the measurement of physical, chemical and biochemical parameters and for spectral measurements directly performed on the patient. An overview of fibre-optic sensors for in vivo monitoring is given, with particular attention paid to the advantages that these sensors are able to offer in different application fields such as cardiovascular and intensive care, angiology, gastroenterology, ophthalmology, oncology, neurology, dermatology and dentistry.

Development and Ground-Test Validation of Fiber Optic Sensor Attachment Techniques for Hot Structures Applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Piazza, Anthony; Hudson, Larry D.; Richards, W. Lance

2005-01-01

Fiber Optic Strain Measurements: a) Successfully attached silica fiber optic sensors to both metallics and composites; b) Accomplished valid EFPI strain measurements to 1850 F; c) Successfully attached EFPI sensors to large scale hot-structures; and d) Attached and thermally validated FBG bond and epsilon(sub app). Future Development a) Improve characterization of sensors on C-C and C-SiC substrates; b) Apply application to other composites such as SiC-SiC; c) Assist development of interferometer based Sapphire sensor currently being conducted under a Phase II SBIR; and d) Complete combined thermal/mechanical testing of FBG on composite substrates in controlled laboratory environment.

Development of optical fiber Bragg grating force-reflection sensor system of medical application for safe minimally invasive robotic surgery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, Hoseok; Kim, Kiyoung; Lee, Jungju

2011-07-01

Force feedback plays a very important role in medical surgery. In minimally invasive surgery (MIS), however, the very long and stiff bars of surgical instruments greatly diminish force feedback for the surgeon. In the case of minimally invasive robotic surgery (MIRS), force feedback is totally eliminated. Previous researchers have reported that the absence of force feedback increased the average force magnitude applied to the tissue by at least 50%, and increased the peak force magnitude by at least a factor of two. Therefore, it is very important to provide force information in MIRS. Recently, many sensors are being developed for MIS and MIRS, but some obstacles to their application in actual medical surgery must be surmounted. The most critical problems are size limit and sterilizability. Optical fiber sensors are among the most suitable sensors for the surgical environment. The optical fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensor, in particular, offers an important additional advantage over other optical fiber sensors in that it is not influenced by the intensity of the light source. In this paper, we present the initial results of a study on the application of a FBG sensor to measure reflected forces in MIRS environments and suggest the possibility of successful application to MIRS systems.

Microshell-tipped optical fibers as sensors of high-pressure pulses in adverse environments

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Benjamin, R.F.; Mayer, F.J.; Maynard, R.L.

1984-01-01

We have developed and used an optical-fiber sensor for detecting the arrival of strong pressure pulses. The sensor consists of an optical fiber, tipped with a gas-filled microballoon. They have been used successfully in adverse environments including explosives, ballistics and electromagnetic pulses (EMP). The sensor produces a bright optical pulse caused by the rapid shock-heating of a gas, typically argon or xenon, which is confined in the spherical glass or plastic microballoon. The light pulse is transmitted via the optical fiber to a photo detector, usually a streak camera or photomultiplier tube. The microballoon optical sensor (called an optical pinmore » by analogy to standard electrical pins), was originally developed for diagnosing an explosive, pulsed-power generator. Optical pins are required due to the EMP. The optical pins are economical arrival-time indicators because many channels can be recorded by one streak camera. The generator tests and related experiments, involving projectile velocities and detonation velocities of several kilometers per/sec have demonstrated the usefulness of the sensors in explosives and ballistics applications. We have also measured the sensitivity of the optical pins to slowly-moving projectiles and found that a 200 m/sec projectile impacting the microballoon sensor produces a flash having a risetime less than 100 ns and a pulse duration (FWHM) of less than 300 ns. The technical and cost advantages of this optical pin make it potentially useful for many electromagnetic, explosive, and ballistics applications.« less

Application of smart optical fiber sensors for structural load monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Davies, Heddwyn; Everall, Lorna A.; Gallon, Andrew M.

2001-06-01

This paper describes a smart monitoring system, incorporating optical fiber sensing techniques, capable of providing important structural information to designers and users alike. This technology has wide industrial and commercial application in areas including aerospace, civil, maritime and automotive engineering. In order to demonstrate the capability of the sensing system it has been installed in a 35m free-standing carbon fiber yacht mast, where a complete optical network of strain and temperature sensors were embedded into a composite mast and boom during lay-up. The system was able to monitor the behavior of the composite rig through a range of handling conditions. The resulting strain information can be used by engineers to improve the structural design process. Embedded fiber optic sensors have wide ranging application for structural load monitoring. Due to their small size, optical fiber sensors can be readily embedded into composite materials. Other advantages include their immediate multiplexing capability and immunity to electro-magnetic interference. The capability of this system has been demonstrated within the maritime and industrial environment, but can be adapted for any application.

NETL Crosscutting Research Video Series – LIBSense™ Sensor

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Bhatt, Chet

NETL’s LIBSense™ Sensor is a small optical sensing device that can be used to detect elements in downhole applications. Since the sensor is an all-optical device and uses no electronics, it can be deployed into extreme environments.

Polymer Optical Fiber Sensor and the Prediction of Sensor Response Utilizing Artificial Neural Networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haroglu, Derya

The global market researches showed that there is a growing trend in the field of polymer optical fiber (POF) and POF sensors. Telecommunications, medicine, defense, aerospace, and automotive are the application areas of fiber optic sensors, where the automotive industry is the most promising application area for innovations in the field of POF sensors. The POF sensors in automobiles are particularly for detection of seat occupancy, and intelligent pedestrian protection systems. This dissertation investigates graded index perfluorinated polymer optical fiber as an intensity modulated intrinsic sensor for application in automotive seat occupancy sensing. Since a fiber optic sensor has a high bandwidth, is small in size, is lightweight, and is immune to electromagnetic interference (EMI) it offers higher performance than that of its electrical based counterparts such as strain gauge, elastomeric bladder, and resistive sensor systems. This makes the fiber optic sensor a potential suitable material for seat occupancy sensing. A textile-based fiber optic sensor was designed to be located in the area beneath the typical seated human's thighs. The pressure interval under which the proposed POF sensor design could perform well was found to be between 0.18 and 0.21 N/cm2, where perfluorinated (PF) graded index (GI) POF (62.5/750 mum) was used as the POF material. In addition, the effect of the automotive seat covering including face material (fabric) and foam backing to the sensor's performance was analyzed. The face fabric structure and the thickness of foam backing were not found to be significant factors to change the sensor results. A research study, survey, was conducted of which purpose was to better understand market demands in terms of sensor performance characteristics for automotive seat weight sensors, as a part of the Quality Function Deployment (QFD) House of Quality analysis. The companies joined the survey agreed on the first 5 most important sensor characteristics: reproducibility, accuracy, selectivity, aging, and resolution. Artificial neural network (ANN), a mathematical model formed by mimicking the human nervous system, was used to predict the sensor response. Qwiknet (version 2.23) software was used to develop ANNs and according to the results of Qwiknet the prediction performances for training and testing data sets were 75%, and 83.33% respectively. In this dissertation, Chapter 1 describes the worldwide plastic optical fiber (POF) and fiber optic sensor markets, and the existing textile structures used in fiber optic sensing design particularly for the applications of biomedical and structural health monitoring (SHM). Chapter 2 provides a literature review in detail on polymer optical fibers, fiber optic sensors, and occupancy sensing in the passenger seats of automobiles. Chapter 3 includes the research objectives. Chapter 4 presents the response of POF to tensile loading, bending, and cyclic tensile loading with discussion parts. Chapter 5 includes an e-mail based survey to prioritize customer needs in a Quality Function Deployment (QFD) format utilizing Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and survey results. Chapter 6 describes the POF sensor design and the behavior of it under pressure. Chapter 7 provides a data analysis based on the experimental results of Chapter 6. Chapter 8 presents the summary of this study and recommendations for future work.

Fiber optic controls for aircraft engines - Issues and implications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dasgupta, Samhita; Poppel, Gary L.; Anderson, William P.

1991-01-01

Some of the issues involved with the application of fiber-optic controls for aircraft engines in the harsh operating environment are addressed, with emphasis on fiber-optic temperature, pressure, position, and speed sensors. Criteria are established to evaluate the optical modulation technique, the sensor/control unit interconnection, and the electrooptic architecture. Single mode and polarization dependent sensor types, sensors which depend on the reflection and/or transmission of light through the engine environment, and intensity-based analog sensors are eliminated as a possible candidate for engine implementation. Fiber-optic harnesses tested for their optical integrity, temperature stability, and mechanical strength, exhibit a capacity to meet mechanical strength requirements and still gain a significant reduction in cable weight.

Recent Development in Optical Chemical Sensors Coupling with Flow Injection Analysis

PubMed Central

Ojeda, Catalina Bosch; Rojas, Fuensanta Sánchez

2006-01-01

Optical techniques for chemical analysis are well established and sensors based on these techniques are now attracting considerable attention because of their importance in applications such as environmental monitoring, biomedical sensing, and industrial process control. On the other hand, flow injection analysis (FIA) is advisable for the rapid analysis of microliter volume samples and can be interfaced directly to the chemical process. The FIA has become a widespread automatic analytical method for more reasons; mainly due to the simplicity and low cost of the setups, their versatility, and ease of assembling. In this paper, an overview of flow injection determinations by using optical chemical sensors is provided, and instrumentation, sensor design, and applications are discussed. This work summarizes the most relevant manuscripts from 1980 to date referred to analysis using optical chemical sensors in FIA.

Planar and finger-shaped optical tactile sensors for robotic applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Begej, Stefan

1988-01-01

Progress is described regarding the development of optical tactile sensors specifically designed for application to dexterous robotics. These sensors operate on optical principles involving the frustration of total internal reflection at a waveguide/elastomer interface and produce a grey-scale tactile image that represents the normal (vertical) forces of contact. The first tactile sensor discussed is a compact, 32 x 32 planar sensor array intended for mounting on a parallel-jaw gripper. Optical fibers were employed to convey the tactile image to a CCD camera and microprocessor-based image analysis system. The second sensor had the shape and size of a human fingertip and was designed for a dexterous robotic hand. It contained 256 sensing sites (taxels) distributed in a dual-density pattern that included a tactile fovea near the tip measuring 13 x 13 mm and containing 169 taxels. The design and construction details of these tactile sensors are presented, in addition to photographs of tactile imprints.

Analysis, design, fabrication and testing of an optical tip clearance sensor. [turbocompressor blade tips

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Poppel, G. L.; Marple, D. T. F.; Kingsley, J. D.

1981-01-01

Analyses and the design, fabrication, and testing of an optical tip clearance sensor with intended application in aircraft propulsion control systems are reported. The design of a sensor test rig, evaluation of optical sensor components at elevated temperatures, sensor design principles, sensor test results at room temperature, and estimations of sensor accuracy at temperatures of an aircraft engine environment are discussed. Room temperature testing indicated possible measurement accuracies of less than 12.7 microns (0.5 mils). Ways to improve performance at engine operating temperatures are recommended. The potential of this tip clearance sensor is assessed.

Fiber Sensor Systems Based on Fiber Laser and Microwave Photonic Technologies

PubMed Central

Fu, Hongyan; Chen, Daru; Cai, Zhiping

2012-01-01

Fiber-optic sensors, especially fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors are very attractive due to their numerous advantages over traditional sensors, such as light weight, high sensitivity, cost-effectiveness, immunity to electromagnetic interference, ease of multiplexing and so on. Therefore, fiber-optic sensors have been intensively studied during the last several decades. Nowadays, with the development of novel fiber technology, more and more newly invented fiber technologies bring better and superior performance to fiber-optic sensing networks. In this paper, the applications of some advanced photonic technologies including fiber lasers and microwave photonic technologies for fiber sensing applications are reviewed. FBG interrogations based on several kinds of fiber lasers, especially the novel Fourier domain mode locking fiber laser, have been introduced; for the application of microwave photonic technology, examples of microwave photonic filtering utilized as a FBG sensing interrogator and microwave signal generation acting as a transversal loading sensor have been given. Both theoretical analysis and experimental demonstrations have been carried out. The comparison of these advanced photonic technologies for the applications of fiber sensing is carried out and important issues related to the applications have been addressed and the suitable and potential application examples have also been discussed in this paper. PMID:22778591

Single mode variable-sensitivity fiber optic sensors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Murphy, K. A.; Fogg, B. R.; Gunther, M. F.; Claus, R. O.

1992-01-01

We review spatially-weighted optical fiber sensors that filter specific vibration modes from one dimensional beams placed in clamped-free and clamped-clamped configurations. The sensitivity of the sensor is varied along the length of the fiber by tapering circular-core, dual-mode optical fibers. Selective vibration mode suppression on the order of 10 dB was obtained. We describe experimental results and propose future extensions to single mode sensor applications.

Advances in fiber optic sensors for in-vivo monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baldini, Francesco; Mignani, Anna G.

1995-09-01

Biomedical fiber-optic sensors are attractive for the measurement of both physical and chemical parameters as well as for spectral measurements directly performed on the patient. An overview of fiber-optic sensors for in vivo monitoring is given, with particular attention to the advantages that these sensors are able to offer in different fields of application such as cardiovascular and intensive care, angiology, gastroenterology, ophthalmology, oncology, neurology, dermatology, and dentistry.

Investigation of optical/infrared sensor techniques for application satellites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kaufman, I.

1972-01-01

A method of scanning an optical sensor array by acoustic surface waves is discussed. Data cover detailed computer based analysis of the operation of a multielement acoustic surface-wave-scanned optical sensor, the development of design and operation techniques that were used to show the feasibility of an integrated array to design several such arrays, and experimental verification of a number of the calculations with discrete sensor devices.

Demonstration of a high speed hybrid electrical and optical sensing system for next generation launcher applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ibrahim, Selwan K.; O'Dowd, John A.; Honniball, Arthur; Bessler, Vivian; Farnan, Martin; O'Connor, Peter; Melicher, Milos; Gleeson, Danny

2017-09-01

The Future Launchers Preparatory Programme (FLPP) supported by the European Space Agency (ESA) has a goal of developing various launch vehicle system concepts and identifying the technologies required for the design of Europe's Next-Generation Launcher (NGL) while maintaining competitiveness on the commercial market. Avionics fiber optic sensing technology was investigated as part of the FLPP programme. Here we demonstrate and evaluate a high speed hybrid electrical/optical data acquisition system based on commercial off the shelf (COTS) technology capable of acquiring data from traditional electrical sensors and optical Fibre Bragg Grating (FBG) sensors. The proposed system consists of the KAM-500 data acquisition system developed by Curtis-Wright and the I4 tunable laser based fiber optic sensor interrogator developed by FAZ Technology. The key objective was to demonstrate the capability of the hybrid system to acquire data from traditional electrical sensors used in launcher applications e.g. strain, temperature and pressure in combination with optical FBG sensors, as well as data delivery to spacecraft avionics systems. The KAM-500 was configured as the main acquisition unit (MAU) and provided a 1 kHz sampling clock to the I4 interrogator that was configured as the secondary acquisition unit (SAU) to synchronize the data acquisition sample rate between both systems. The SAU acquired data from an array of optical FBG sensors, while the MAU data acquisition system acquired data from the electrical sensors. Data acquired from the optical sensors was processed by the FAZ I4 interrogation system and then encapsulated into UDP/IP packets and transferred to the KAM-500. The KAM-500 encapsulated the optical sensor data together with the data acquired from electrical sensors and transmitted the data over MIL-STD-1553 and Ethernet data interface. The temperature measurements resulted in the optical and electrical sensors performing on a par with each other, with all sensors recording an accuracy within 0.35% FS over the full temperature range of -70°C to +180°C. The pressure measurements were performed over a 0 to 5 bar absolute pressure range and over different temperatures across a -40°C to +80°C range. The tests concluded that the optical pressure sensors performed on par with the electrical pressure sensor for each temperature set, where both sensor technologies measured a pressure accuracy of 1.2% FS. As for the strain measurements, the results show the optical and electrical sensors can measure to within 1% FS (Full Scale) of measurement range +/-1,200 μstrain. The proposed hybrid system can be potentially used for next generation launcher applications delivering weight reduction, improvement in measurement coverage and reduction in Assembly, Integration and Testing (AIT) over traditional electrical systems.

Mid-infrared Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor fully cryogenic using extended source for endoatmospheric applications.

PubMed

Robert, Clélia; Michau, Vincent; Fleury, Bruno; Magli, Serge; Vial, Laurent

2012-07-02

Adaptive optics provide real-time compensation for atmospheric turbulence. The correction quality relies on a key element: the wavefront sensor. We have designed an adaptive optics system in the mid-infrared range providing high spatial resolution for ground-to-air applications, integrating a Shack-Hartmann infrared wavefront sensor operating on an extended source. This paper describes and justifies the design of the infrared wavefront sensor, while defining and characterizing the Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor camera. Performance and illustration of field tests are also reported.

Optical and Electric Multifunctional CMOS Image Sensors for On-Chip Biosensing Applications.

PubMed

Tokuda, Takashi; Noda, Toshihiko; Sasagawa, Kiyotaka; Ohta, Jun

2010-12-29

In this review, the concept, design, performance, and a functional demonstration of multifunctional complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) image sensors dedicated to on-chip biosensing applications are described. We developed a sensor architecture that allows flexible configuration of a sensing pixel array consisting of optical and electric sensing pixels, and designed multifunctional CMOS image sensors that can sense light intensity and electric potential or apply a voltage to an on-chip measurement target. We describe the sensors' architecture on the basis of the type of electric measurement or imaging functionalities.

Morphology-Dependent Resonances and Their Applications to Sensing in Aerospace Environments

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Adamovsky, G.; Otugen, M.V.

2009-01-01

This paper reviews recent developments in Morphology-Dependent Resonance (MDR)-based sensors for aerospace applications. The sensor concept is based on the detection of small shifts of optical resonances (also called the whispering gallery modes or WGM) of dielectric spheres caused by external effects. Recent developments in MRD-based micro-optical sensors for temperature, force, pressure, and concentration are discussed. In addition to the experimental configurations used in each type of prototype sensor, a brief overview is also given for analytical approaches to describe the sensor principle.

Intense transient electric field sensor based on the electro-optic effect of LiNbO{sub 3}

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Yang, Qing, E-mail: yangqing@cqu.edu.cn; Sun, Shangpeng; Han, Rui

2015-10-15

Intense transient electric field measurements are widely applied in various research areas. An optical intense E-field sensor for time-domain measurements, based on the electro-optic effect of lithium niobate, has been studied in detail. Principles and key issues in the design of the sensor are presented. The sensor is insulated, small in size (65 mm × 15 mm × 15 mm), and suitable for high-intensity (<801 kV/m) electric field measurements over a wide frequency band (10 Hz–10 MHz). The input/output characteristics of the sensor were obtained and the sensor calibrated. Finally, an application using this sensor in testing laboratory lightning impulsesmore » and in measuring transient electric fields during switch-on of a disconnector confirmed that the sensor is expected to find widespread use in transient intense electric field measurement applications.« less

Intense transient electric field sensor based on the electro-optic effect of LiNbO3

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Qing; Sun, Shangpeng; Han, Rui; Sima, Wenxia; Liu, Tong

2015-10-01

Intense transient electric field measurements are widely applied in various research areas. An optical intense E-field sensor for time-domain measurements, based on the electro-optic effect of lithium niobate, has been studied in detail. Principles and key issues in the design of the sensor are presented. The sensor is insulated, small in size (65 mm × 15 mm × 15 mm), and suitable for high-intensity (<801 kV/m) electric field measurements over a wide frequency band (10 Hz-10 MHz). The input/output characteristics of the sensor were obtained and the sensor calibrated. Finally, an application using this sensor in testing laboratory lightning impulses and in measuring transient electric fields during switch-on of a disconnector confirmed that the sensor is expected to find widespread use in transient intense electric field measurement applications.

A Self-Referenced Optical Intensity Sensor Network Using POFBGs for Biomedical Applications

PubMed Central

Moraleda, Alberto Tapetado; Montero, David Sánchez; Webb, David J.; García, Carmen Vázquez

2014-01-01

This work bridges the gap between the remote interrogation of multiple optical sensors and the advantages of using inherently biocompatible low-cost polymer optical fiber (POF)-based photonic sensing. A novel hybrid sensor network combining both silica fiber Bragg gratings (FBG) and polymer FBGs (POFBG) is analyzed. The topology is compatible with WDM networks so multiple remote sensors can be addressed providing high scalability. A central monitoring unit with virtual data processing is implemented, which could be remotely located up to units of km away. The feasibility of the proposed solution for potential medical environments and biomedical applications is shown. PMID:25615736

A self-referenced optical intensity sensor network using POFBGs for biomedical applications.

PubMed

Tapetado Moraleda, Alberto; Sánchez Montero, David; Webb, David J; Vázquez García, Carmen

2014-12-12

This work bridges the gap between the remote interrogation of multiple optical sensors and the advantages of using inherently biocompatible low-cost polymer optical fiber (POF)-based photonic sensing. A novel hybrid sensor network combining both silica fiber Bragg gratings (FBG) and polymer FBGs (POFBG) is analyzed. The topology is compatible with WDM networks so multiple remote sensors can be addressed providing high scalability. A central monitoring unit with virtual data processing is implemented, which could be remotely located up to units of km away. The feasibility of the proposed solution for potential medical environments and biomedical applications is shown.

Navigation and Elctro-Optic Sensor Integration Technology for Fusion of Imagery and Digital Mapping Products

DTIC Science & Technology

1999-08-01

Electro - Optic Sensor Integration Technology (NEOSIT) software application. The design is highly modular and based on COTS tools to facilitate integration with sensors, navigation and digital data sources already installed on different host

NETL Crosscutting Research Video Series – LIBSense™ Sensor (Short Version)

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

None

NETL’s LIBSense™ Sensor is a small optical sensing device that can be used to detect elements in downhole applications. Since the sensor is an all-optical device and uses no electronics, it can be deployed into extreme environments.

Silicon carbide novel optical sensor for combustion systems and nuclear reactors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lim, Geunsik; Kar, Aravinda

2014-09-01

Crystalline silicon carbide is a wide bandgap semiconductor material with excellent optical properties, chemical inertness, radiation hardness and high mechanical strength at high temperatures. It is an excellent material platform for sensor applications in harsh environments such as combustion systems and nuclear reactors. A laser doping technique is used to fabricate SiC sensors for different combustion gases such as CO2, CO, NO and NO2. The sensor operates based on the principle of semiconductor optics, producing optical signal in contrast to conventional electrical sensors that produces electrical signal. The sensor response is measured with a low power He-Ne or diode laser.

High capacity fiber optic sensor networks using hybrid multiplexing techniques and their applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Qizhen; Li, Xiaolei; Zhang, Manliang; Liu, Qi; Liu, Hai; Liu, Deming

2013-12-01

Fiber optic sensor network is the development trend of fiber senor technologies and industries. In this paper, I will discuss recent research progress on high capacity fiber sensor networks with hybrid multiplexing techniques and their applications in the fields of security monitoring, environment monitoring, Smart eHome, etc. Firstly, I will present the architecture of hybrid multiplexing sensor passive optical network (HSPON), and the key technologies for integrated access and intelligent management of massive fiber sensor units. Two typical hybrid WDM/TDM fiber sensor networks for perimeter intrusion monitor and cultural relics security are introduced. Secondly, we propose the concept of "Microstructure－Optical X Domin Refecltor (M-OXDR)" for fiber sensor network expansion. By fabricating smart micro-structures with the ability of multidimensional encoded and low insertion loss along the fiber, the fiber sensor network of simple structure and huge capacity more than one thousand could be achieved. Assisted by the WDM/TDM and WDM/FDM decoding methods respectively, we built the verification systems for long-haul and real-time temperature sensing. Finally, I will show the high capacity and flexible fiber sensor network with IPv6 protocol based hybrid fiber/wireless access. By developing the fiber optic sensor with embedded IPv6 protocol conversion module and IPv6 router, huge amounts of fiber optic sensor nodes can be uniquely addressed. Meanwhile, various sensing information could be integrated and accessed to the Next Generation Internet.

A Review of Distributed Optical Fiber Sensors for Civil Engineering Applications

PubMed Central

Barrias, António; Casas, Joan R.; Villalba, Sergi

2016-01-01

The application of structural health monitoring (SHM) systems to civil engineering structures has been a developing studied and practiced topic, that has allowed for a better understanding of structures’ conditions and increasingly lead to a more cost-effective management of those infrastructures. In this field, the use of fiber optic sensors has been studied, discussed and practiced with encouraging results. The possibility of understanding and monitor the distributed behavior of extensive stretches of critical structures it’s an enormous advantage that distributed fiber optic sensing provides to SHM systems. In the past decade, several R & D studies have been performed with the goal of improving the knowledge and developing new techniques associated with the application of distributed optical fiber sensors (DOFS) in order to widen the range of applications of these sensors and also to obtain more correct and reliable data. This paper presents, after a brief introduction to the theoretical background of DOFS, the latest developments related with the improvement of these products by presenting a wide range of laboratory experiments as well as an extended review of their diverse applications in civil engineering structures. PMID:27223289

A Review of Distributed Optical Fiber Sensors for Civil Engineering Applications.

PubMed

Barrias, António; Casas, Joan R; Villalba, Sergi

2016-05-23

The application of structural health monitoring (SHM) systems to civil engineering structures has been a developing studied and practiced topic, that has allowed for a better understanding of structures' conditions and increasingly lead to a more cost-effective management of those infrastructures. In this field, the use of fiber optic sensors has been studied, discussed and practiced with encouraging results. The possibility of understanding and monitor the distributed behavior of extensive stretches of critical structures it's an enormous advantage that distributed fiber optic sensing provides to SHM systems. In the past decade, several R & D studies have been performed with the goal of improving the knowledge and developing new techniques associated with the application of distributed optical fiber sensors (DOFS) in order to widen the range of applications of these sensors and also to obtain more correct and reliable data. This paper presents, after a brief introduction to the theoretical background of DOFS, the latest developments related with the improvement of these products by presenting a wide range of laboratory experiments as well as an extended review of their diverse applications in civil engineering structures.

Development of integrated optical tracking sensor by planar optics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kawano, Hiroyuki; Sasagawa, Tomohiro; Nishimae, Junichi; Sato, Yukio

1999-03-01

A compact and light weight optical tracking sensor for a large capacity flexible disk drive is demonstrated. The size of the optical element is no larger than 5.4 mm in length X 3.6 mm in width X 1.2 mm in height and the weight is only 18 mg. The application of the planar optical technique makes it possible to integrate all passive optical elements onto one transparent substrate. These features are useful for high- speed access, easy optical alignment, mass production, and miniaturization. The design and optical characteristics of the optical tracking sensor are described.

Optical technologies for space sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Hu; Liu, Jie; Xue, Yaoke; Liu, Yang; Liu, Meiying; Wang, Lingguang; Yang, Shaodong; Lin, Shangmin; Chen, Su; Luo, Jianjun

2015-10-01

Space sensors are used in navigation sensor fields. The sun, the earth, the moon and other planets are used as frame of reference to obtain stellar position coordinates, and then to control the attitude of an aircraft. Being the "eyes" of the space sensors, Optical sensor system makes images of the infinite far stars and other celestial bodies. It directly affects measurement accuracy of the space sensor, indirectly affecting the data updating rate. Star sensor technology is the pilot for Space sensors. At present more and more attention is paid on all-day star sensor technology. By day and night measurements of the stars, the aircraft's attitude in the inertial coordinate system can be provided. Facing the requirements of ultra-high-precision, large field of view, wide spectral range, long life and high reliability, multi-functional optical system, we integration, integration optical sensors will be future space technology trends. In the meantime, optical technologies for space-sensitive research leads to the development of ultra-precision optical processing, optical and precision test machine alignment technology. It also promotes the development of long-life optical materials and applications. We have achieved such absolute distortion better than ±1um, Space life of at least 15years of space-sensitive optical system.

Spectrally encoded optical fibre sensor systems and their application in process control, environmental and structural monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Willsch, Reinhardt; Ecke, Wolfgang; Schwotzer, Gunter

2005-09-01

Different types of advanced optical fibre sensor systems using similar spectral interrogation principles and potential low-cost polychromator optoelectronic signal processing instrumentation will be presented, and examples of their industrial application are demonstrated. These are such sensors as multimode fibre based humidity, temperature, and pressure sensors with extrinsic microoptical Fabry-Perot transducers for process control in gas industry, UV absorption evanescent field sensors for organic pollution monitoring in groundwater, and single mode fibre Bragg grating (FBG) multiplexed strain & vibration and temperature sensor networks for structural health monitoring applications in electric power facilities, aerospace, railways, geotechnical and civil engineering. Recent results of current investigations applying FBGs and microstructured fibres for chemical sensing will be discussed.

Optical fiber sensors for breathing diagnostics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Q.; Claus, Richard O.; Mecham, Jeffrey B.; Vercellino, M.; Arregui, Francisco J.; Matias, Ignacio R.

2002-03-01

We report the application of an optical fiber-based humidity sensor to the problem of breathing diagnostics. The sensor is fabricated by molecularly self-assembling selected polymers and functionalized inorganic nanoclusters into multilayered optical thin films on the cleaved and polished flat end of a singlemode optical fiber. Prior work has studied the synthesis process and the fundamental mechanisms responsible for the change in optical reflection from the film that occurs as a function of humidity. We will briefly review that prior work as a way to introduce more recent developments. This paper will then discuss the application of these sensors to the analysis of air flow. We have designed the sensor thin film materials for the detection of relative humidity over a wide range, from approximately 10 to 95%, and for response times as short as several tens of milliseconds. This very fast response time allows the near real-time analysis of air flow and humidity during a single breath, with the advantage of very small size.

Coordinating standards and applications for optical water quality sensor networks

USGS Publications Warehouse

Bergamaschi, B.; Pellerin, B.

2011-01-01

Joint USGS-CUAHSI Workshop: In Situ Optical Water Quality Sensor Networks; Shepherdstown, West Virginia, 8-10 June 2011; Advanced in situ optical water quality sensors and new techniques for data analysis hold enormous promise for advancing scientific understanding of aquatic systems through measurements of important biogeochemical parameters at the time scales over which they vary. High-frequency and real-time water quality data also provide the opportunity for early warning of water quality deterioration, trend detection, and science-based decision support. However, developing networks of optical sensors in freshwater systems that report reliable and comparable data across and between sites remains a challenge to the research and monitoring community. To address this, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and the Consortium of Universities for the Advancement of Hydrologic Science, Inc. (CUAHSI), convened a 3-day workshop to explore ways to coordinate development of standards and applications for optical sensors, as well as handling, storage, and analysis of the continuous data they produce.

Conformal self-assembled thin films for optical pH sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Topasna, Daniela M.; Topasna, Gregory A.; Liu, Minghanbo; Tseng, Ching-Hung

2016-04-01

Simple, reliable, lightweight, and inexpensive thin films based sensors are still in intense development and high demand in many applications such as biomedical, industrial, environmental, military, and consumer products. One important class of sensors is the optical pH sensor. In addition, conformal thin film based sensors extend the range of application for pH optical sensors. We present the results on the fabrication and characterization of optical pH sensing coatings made through ionic self-assembled technique. These thin films are based on the combination of a polyelectrolyte and water-soluble organic dye molecule Direct Yellow 4. A series of films was fabricated and characterized in order to determine the optimized parameters of the polymer and of the organic dye solutions. The optical pH responses of these films were also studied. The transparent films were immersed in solutions at various temperature and pH values. The films are stable when immersed in solutions with pH below 9.0 and temperatures below 90 °C and they maintain their performance after longer immersion times. We also demonstrate the functionality of these coatings as conformal films.

Durability tests of a fiber optic corrosion sensor.

PubMed

Wan, Kai Tai; Leung, Christopher K Y

2012-01-01

Steel corrosion is a major cause of degradation in reinforced concrete structures, and there is a need to develop cost-effective methods to detect the initiation of corrosion in such structures. This paper presents a low cost, easy to use fiber optic corrosion sensor for practical application. Thin iron film is deposited on the end surface of a cleaved optical fiber by sputtering. When light is sent into the fiber, most of it is reflected by the coating. If the surrounding environment is corrosive, the film is corroded and the intensity of the reflected signal drops significantly. In previous work, the sensing principle was verified by various experiments in laboratory and a packaging method was introduced. In this paper, the method of multiplexing several sensors by optical time domain reflectometer (OTDR) and optical splitter is introduced, together with the interpretation of OTDR results. The practical applicability of the proposed sensors is demonstrated in a three-year field trial with the sensors installed in an aggressive marine environment. The durability of the sensor against chemical degradation and physical degradation is also verified by accelerated life test and freeze-thaw cycling test, respectively.

Optical fiber-based fluorescent viscosity sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haidekker, Mark A.; Akers, Walter J.; Fischer, Derek; Theodorakis, Emmanuel A.

2006-09-01

Molecular rotors are a unique group of viscosity-sensitive fluorescent probes. Several recent studies have shown their applicability as nonmechanical fluid viscosity sensors, particularly in biofluids containing proteins. To date, molecular rotors have had to be dissolved in the fluid for the measurement to be taken. We now show that molecular rotors may be covalently bound to a fiber-optic tip without loss of viscosity sensitivity. The optical fiber itself may be used as a light guide for emission light (external illumination of the tip) as well as for both emission and excitation light. Covalently bound molecular rotors exhibit a viscosity-dependent intensity increase similar to molecular rotors in solution. An optical fiber-based fluorescent viscosity sensor may be used in real-time measurement applications ranging from biomedical applications to the food industry.

Optical fiber-based fluorescent viscosity sensor.

PubMed

Haidekker, Mark A; Akers, Walter J; Fischer, Derek; Theodorakis, Emmanuel A

2006-09-01

Molecular rotors are a unique group of viscosity-sensitive fluorescent probes. Several recent studies have shown their applicability as nonmechanical fluid viscosity sensors, particularly in biofluids containing proteins. To date, molecular rotors have had to be dissolved in the fluid for the measurement to be taken. We now show that molecular rotors may be covalently bound to a fiber-optic tip without loss of viscosity sensitivity. The optical fiber itself may be used as a light guide for emission light (external illumination of the tip) as well as for both emission and excitation light. Covalently bound molecular rotors exhibit a viscosity-dependent intensity increase similar to molecular rotors in solution. An optical fiber-based fluorescent viscosity sensor may be used in real-time measurement applications ranging from biomedical applications to the food industry.

Optical Fiber-Based MR-Compatible Sensors for Medical Applications: An Overview

PubMed Central

Taffoni, Fabrizio; Formica, Domenico; Saccomandi, Paola; Di Pino, Giovanni; Schena, Emiliano

2013-01-01

During last decades, Magnetic Resonance (MR)—compatible sensors based on different techniques have been developed due to growing demand for application in medicine. There are several technological solutions to design MR-compatible sensors, among them, the one based on optical fibers presents several attractive features. The high elasticity and small size allow designing miniaturized fiber optic sensors (FOS) with metrological characteristics (e.g., accuracy, sensitivity, zero drift, and frequency response) adequate for most common medical applications; the immunity from electromagnetic interference and the absence of electrical connection to the patient make FOS suitable to be used in high electromagnetic field and intrinsically safer than conventional technologies. These two features further heightened the potential role of FOS in medicine making them especially attractive for application in MRI. This paper provides an overview of MR-compatible FOS, focusing on the sensors employed for measuring physical parameters in medicine (i.e., temperature, force, torque, strain, and position). The working principles of the most promising FOS are reviewed in terms of their relevant advantages and disadvantages, together with their applications in medicine. PMID:24145918

Sensitive liquid refractive index sensors using tapered optical fiber tips.

PubMed

Tai, Yi-Hsin; Wei, Pei-Kuen

2010-04-01

An optical fiber sensor based on the change of optical confinement in a subwavelength tip is presented. The optical spot is substantially increased when the environmental refractive index (RI) increases from 1.3 to 1.4. By measuring the intensity of low angular spectral components, an intensity sensitivity up to 8000% per RI unit is achieved. The fiber tip sensors take advantage of the small detection volume and real-time responses. We demonstrate the application of the nanofiber sensors for measuring concentrations of acids and evaporation rates of aqueous mixtures.

A review of fiber-optic corrosion sensor in civil engineering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Luo, Dong; Li, Junnan; Li, Yuanyuan

2018-05-01

Fiber-optical corrosion sensor (FOCS) is the research hotspot of corrosion monitoring sensor in recent years. It has the advantages of lightness, simplicity, anti-electromagnetic interference and distributed measurement, so it has an attractive application prospect. In this paper, the mechanism of metal corrosion is introduced. Several common methods for detecting optical fiber corrosion sensors are presented, and the latest progress of optical fiber corrosion sensors in recent years is described. We need to design a set of sensor devices that can directly monitor the corrosion of reinforcing steel bars directly, and propose a method of time dependent reliability assessment based on monitoring data, so as to form a complete research path.

Fiber optic, Fabry-Perot high temperature sensor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

James, K.; Quick, B.

1984-01-01

A digital, fiber optic temperature sensor using a variable Fabry-Perot cavity as the sensor element was analyzed, designed, fabricated, and tested. The fiber transmitted cavity reflection spectra is dispersed then converted from an optical signal to electrical information by a charged coupled device (CCD). A microprocessor-based color demodulation system converts the wavelength information to temperature. This general sensor concept not only utilizes an all-optical means of parameter sensing and transmitting, but also exploits microprocessor technology for automated control, calibration, and enhanced performance. The complete temperature sensor system was evaluated in the laboratory. Results show that the Fabry-Perot temperature sensor has good resolution (0.5% of full seale), high accuracy, and potential high temperature ( 1000 C) applications.

Variational optical flow estimation for images with spectral and photometric sensor diversity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bengtsson, Tomas; McKelvey, Tomas; Lindström, Konstantin

2015-03-01

Motion estimation of objects in image sequences is an essential computer vision task. To this end, optical flow methods compute pixel-level motion, with the purpose of providing low-level input to higher-level algorithms and applications. Robust flow estimation is crucial for the success of applications, which in turn depends on the quality of the captured image data. This work explores the use of sensor diversity in the image data within a framework for variational optical flow. In particular, a custom image sensor setup intended for vehicle applications is tested. Experimental results demonstrate the improved flow estimation performance when IR sensitivity or flash illumination is added to the system.

Optical hydrogen sensors based on metal-hydrides

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Slaman, M.; Westerwaal, R.; Schreuders, H.; Dam, B.

2012-06-01

For many hydrogen related applications it is preferred to use optical hydrogen sensors above electrical systems. Optical sensors reduce the risk of ignition by spark formation and are less sensitive to electrical interference. Currently palladium and palladium alloys are used for most hydrogen sensors since they are well known for their hydrogen dissociation and absorption properties at relatively low temperatures. The disadvantages of palladium in sensors are the low optical response upon hydrogen loading, the cross sensitivity for oxygen and carbon, the limited detection range and the formation of micro-cracks after some hydrogen absorption/desorption cycles. In contrast to Pd, we find that the use of magnesium or rear earth bases metal-hydrides in optical hydrogen sensors allow tuning of the detection levels over a broad pressure range, while maintaining a high optical response. We demonstrate a stable detection layer for detecting hydrogen below 10% of the lower explosion limit in an oxygen rich environment. This detection layer is deposited at the bare end of a glass fiber as a micro-mirror and is covered with a thin layer of palladium. The palladium layer promotes the hydrogen uptake at room temperature and acts as a hydrogen selective membrane. To protect the sensor for a long time in air a final layer of a hydrophobic fluorine based coating is applied. Such a sensor can be used for example as safety detector in automotive applications. We find that this type of fiber optic hydrogen sensor is also suitable for hydrogen detection in liquids. As example we demonstrate a sensor for detecting a broad range of concentrations in transformer oil. Such a sensor can signal a warning when sparks inside a high voltage power transformer decompose the transformer oil over a long period.

Micro optical fiber light source and sensor and method of fabrication thereof

DOEpatents

Kopelman, Raoul; Tan, Weihong; Shi, Zhong-You

1994-01-01

This invention relates generally to the development of and a method of fabricating a micro optical fiber light source. An optical fiber micro-light source is presented whose aperture is extremely small yet able to act as an intense light source. Light sources of this type have wide ranging applications, including use as micro-sensors in NSOM. Micro-sensor light sources have excellent detection limits as well as photo stability, reversibility, and millisecond response times. Furthermore, a method for manufacturing a micro optical fiber light source is provided. It involves the photo-chemical attachment of an optically active material onto the end surface of an optical fiber cable which has been pulled to form an end with an extremely narrow aperture. More specifically, photopolymerization has been applied as a means to photo-chemically attach an optically active material. This process allows significant control of the size of the micro light source. Furthermore, photo-chemically attaching an optically active material enables the implementation of the micro-light source in a variety of sensor applications.

Micro optical fiber light source and sensor and method of fabrication thereof

DOEpatents

Kopelman, R.; Tan, W.; Shi, Z.Y.

1994-11-01

This invention relates generally to the development of and a method of fabricating a micro optical fiber light source. An optical fiber micro-light source is presented whose aperture is extremely small yet able to act as an intense light source. Light sources of this type have wide ranging applications, including use as micro-sensors in NSOM. Micro-sensor light sources have excellent detection limits as well as photo stability, reversibility, and millisecond response times. Furthermore, a method for manufacturing a micro optical fiber light source is provided. It involves the photo-chemical attachment of an optically active material onto the end surface of an optical fiber cable which has been pulled to form an end with an extremely narrow aperture. More specifically, photopolymerization has been applied as a means to photo-chemically attach an optically active material. This process allows significant control of the size of the micro light source. Furthermore, photo-chemically attaching an optically active material enables the implementation of the micro-light source in a variety of sensor applications. 4 figs.

Active Temperature Compensation Using a High-Temperature, Fiber Optic, Hybrid Pressure and Temperature Sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fielder, Robert S.; Palmer, Matthew E.; Davis, Matthew A.; Engelbrecht, Gordon P.

2006-01-01

Luna Innovations has developed a novel, fiber optic, hybrid pressure-temperature sensor system for extremely high-temperature environments that is capable of reliable operation up to 1050 °C. This system is based on the extremely high-temperature fiber optic sensors already demonstrated during previous work. The novelty of the sensors presented here lies in the fact that pressure and temperature are measured simultaneously with a single fiber and a single transducer. This hybrid approach will enable highly accurate active temperature compensation and sensor self-diagnostics not possible with other platforms. Hybrid pressure and temperature sensors were calibrated by varying both pressure and temperature. Implementing active temperature compensation resulted in a ten-fold reduction in the temperature-dependence of the pressure measurement. Sensors were tested for operability in a relatively high neutron dose environment up to 6.9×1017 n/cm2. In addition to harsh environment survivability, fiber optic sensors offer a number of intrinsic advantages for space nuclear power applications including extremely low mass, immunity to electromagnetic interference, self diagnostics / prognostics, and smart sensor capability. Deploying fiber optic sensors on future space exploration missions would provide a substantial improvement in spacecraft instrumentation. Additional development is needed, however, before these advantages can be realized. This paper will highlight recent demonstrations of fiber optic sensors in environments relevant to space nuclear applications. Successes and lessons learned will be highlighted. Additionally, development needs will be covered which will suggest a framework for a coherent plan to continue work in this area.

Design of micro-ring optical sensors and circuits for integration on optical printed circuit boards (O-PCBs)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, El-Hang; Lee, Hyun S.; Lee, S. G.; O, B. H.; Park, S. G.; Kim, K. H.

2007-05-01

We report on the design of micro-ring resonator optical sensors for integration on what we call optical printed circuit boards (O-PCBs). The objective is to realize application-specific O-PCBs, either on hard board or on flexible board, by integrating micro/nano-scale optical sensors for compact, light-weight, low-energy, high-speed, intelligent, and environmentally friendly processing of information. The O-PCBs consist of two-dimensional planar arrays of micro/nano-scale optical wires, circuits and devices that are interconnected and integrated to perform the functions of sensing and then storing, transporting, processing, switching, routing and distributing optical signals that have been collected by means of sensors. For fabrication, the polymer and organic optical wires and waveguides are first fabricated on a board and are used to interconnect and integrate sensors and other micro/ nano-scale photonic devices. Here, in our study, we focus on the sensors based on the micro-ring structures. We designed bio-sensors using silicon based micro-ring resonator. We investigate the characteristics such as sensitivity and selectivity (or quality factor) of micro-ring resonator for their use in bio-sensing application. We performed simulation studies on the quality factor of micro-ring resonators by varying the radius of the ring resonators and the separation between adjacent waveguides. We introduce the effective coupling coefficient as a realistic value to describe the strength of the coupling in micro-ring resonators.

Vibration sensing in flexible structures using a distributed-effect modal domain optical fiber sensor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Reichard, Karl M.; Lindner, Douglas K.; Claus, Richard O.

1991-01-01

Modal domain optical fiber sensors have recently been employed in the implementation of system identification algorithms and the closed-loop control of vibrations in flexible structures. The mathematical model of the modal domain optical fiber sensor used in these applications, however, only accounted for the effects of strain in the direction of the fiber's longitudinal axis. In this paper, we extend this model to include the effects of arbitrary stress. Using this sensor model, we characterize the sensor's sensitivity and dynamic range.

A review of recent advances in optical fibre sensors for in vivo dosimetry during radiotherapy

PubMed Central

O'Keeffe, S; McCarthy, D; Woulfe, P; Grattan, M W D; Hounsell, A R; Sporea, D; Mihai, L; Vata, I; Leen, G

2015-01-01

This article presents an overview of the recent developments and requirements in radiotherapy dosimetry, with particular emphasis on the development of optical fibre dosemeters for radiotherapy applications, focusing particularly on in vivo applications. Optical fibres offer considerable advantages over conventional techniques for radiotherapy dosimetry, owing to their small size, immunity to electromagnetic interferences, and suitability for remote monitoring and multiplexing. The small dimensions of optical fibre-based dosemeters, together with being lightweight and flexible, mean that they are minimally invasive and thus particularly suited to in vivo dosimetry. This means that the sensor can be placed directly inside a patient, for example, for brachytherapy treatments, the optical fibres could be placed in the tumour itself or into nearby critical tissues requiring monitoring, via the same applicators or needles used for the treatment delivery thereby providing real-time dosimetric information. The article outlines the principal sensor design systems along with some of the main strengths and weaknesses associated with the development of these techniques. The successful demonstration of these sensors in a range of different clinical environments is also presented. PMID:25761212

Application of a Fiber Optic Distributed Strain Sensor System to Woven E-Glass Composite

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Anastasi, Robert F.; Lopatin, Craig

2001-01-01

A distributed strain sensing system utilizing a series of identically written Bragg gratings along an optical fiber is examined for potential application to Composite Armored Vehicle health monitoring. A vacuum assisted resin transfer molding process was used to fabricate a woven fabric E-glass/composite panel with an embedded fiber optic strain sensor. Test samples machined from the panel were mechanically tested in 4-point bending. Experimental results are presented that show the mechanical strain from foil strain gages comparing well to optical strain from the embedded sensors. Also, it was found that the distributed strain along the sample length was consistent with the loading configuration.

Femtosecond laser processing of optical fibres for novel sensor development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kalli, Kyriacos; Theodosiou, Antreas; Ioannou, Andreas; Lacraz, Amedee

2017-04-01

We present results of recent research where we have utilized a femtosecond laser to micro-structure silica and polymer optical fibres in order to realize versatile optical components such as diffractive optical elements on the fibre end face, the inscription of integrated waveguide circuits in the fibre cladding and novel optical fibre sensors designs based on Bragg gratings in the core. A major hurdle in tailoring or modifying the properties of optical fibres is the development of an inscription method that can prove to be a flexible and reliable process that is generally applicable to all optical fibre types; this requires careful matching of the laser parameters and optics in order to examine the spatial limits of direct laser writing, whether the application is structuring at the surface of the optical fibre or inscription in the core and cladding of the fibre. We demonstrate a variety of optical components such as two-dimensional grating structures, Bessel, Airy and vortex beam generators; moreover, optical bridging waveguides inscribed in the cladding of single-mode fibre as a means to selectively couple light from single-core to multi-core optical fibres, and demonstrate a grating based sensor; finally, we have developed a novel femtosecond laser inscription method for the precise inscription of tailored Bragg grating sensors in silica and polymer optical fibres. We also show that this novel fibre Bragg grating inscription technique can be used to modify and add versatility to an existing, encapsulated optical fibre pressure sensor.

Chemical, biochemical, and environmental fiber sensors IV; Proceedings of the Meeting, Boston, MA, Sept. 8, 9, 1992

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lieberman, Robert A.

Various paper on chemical, biochemical, and environmental fiber sensors are presented. Some of the individual topics addressed include: evanescent-wave fiber optic (FO) biosensor, refractive-index sensors based on coupling to high-index multimode overlays, advanced technique in FO sensors, design of luminescence-based temperature sensors, NIR fluorescence in FO applications, FO sensor based on microencapsulated reagents, emitters and detectors for optical gas and chemical sensing, tunable fiber laser source for methane detection at 1.68 micron, FO fluorometer based on a dual-wavelength laser excitation source, thin polymer films as active components of FO chemical sensors, submicron optical sources for single macromolecule detection, nanometer optical fiber pH sensor. Also discussed are: microfabrication of optical sensor array, luminescent FO sensor for the measurement of pH, time-domain fluorescence methods as applied to pH sensing, characterization of a sol-gel-entrapped artificial receptor, FO technology for nuclear waste cleanup, spectroscopic gas sensing with IR hollow waveguides, dissolved-oxygen quenching of in situ fluorescence measurements.

Microwave assisted reconstruction of optical interferograms for distributed fiber optic sensing.

PubMed

Huang, Jie; Hua, Lei; Lan, Xinwei; Wei, Tao; Xiao, Hai

2013-07-29

This paper reports a distributed fiber optic sensing technique through microwave assisted separation and reconstruction of optical interferograms in spectrum domain. The approach involves sending a microwave-modulated optical signal through cascaded fiber optic interferometers. The microwave signal was used to resolve the position and reflectivity of each sensor along the optical fiber. By sweeping the optical wavelength and detecting the modulation signal, the optical spectrum of each sensor can be reconstructed. Three cascaded fiber optic extrinsic Fabry-Perot interferometric sensors were used to prove the concept. Their microwave-reconstructed interferogram matched well with those recorded individually using an optical spectrum analyzer. The application in distributed strain measurement has also been demonstrated.

Guided wave and damage detection in composite laminates using different fiber optic sensors.

PubMed

Li, Fucai; Murayama, Hideaki; Kageyama, Kazuro; Shirai, Takehiro

2009-01-01

Guided wave detection using different fiber optic sensors and their applications in damage detection for composite laminates were systematically investigated and compared in this paper. Two types of fiber optic sensors, namely fiber Bragg gratings (FBG) and Doppler effect-based fiber optic (FOD) sensors, were addressed and guided wave detection systems were constructed for both types. Guided waves generated by a piezoelectric transducer were propagated through a quasi-isotropic carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) laminate and acquired by these fiber optic sensors. Characteristics of these fiber optic sensors in ultrasonic guided wave detection were systematically compared. Results demonstrated that both the FBG and FOD sensors can be applied in guided wave and damage detection for the CFRP laminates. The signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of guided wave signal captured by an FOD sensor is relatively high in comparison with that of the FBG sensor because of their different physical principles in ultrasonic detection. Further, the FOD sensor is sensitive to the damage-induced fundamental shear horizontal (SH(0)) guided wave that, however, cannot be detected by using the FBG sensor, because the FOD sensor is omnidirectional in ultrasound detection and, in contrast, the FBG sensor is severely direction dependent.

Design of liquid temperature sensor based on bending loss phenomenon of plastic optic fiber and electro-optic effect of Mach-Zehnder interferometer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kumar, Santosh; Swaminathan, S.

2016-04-01

The efficient application of electro-optic effect in lithium niobate based Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) to construct the temperature sensor is used. An experimental set up for liquid temperature sensor is proposed. Temperature dependence of the bending loss light energy in multimode micro-plastic optical fiber (m-POF) and electro-optic effect of MZI are used. The performance of sensor at different temperatures is measured. It is seen that the light output of MZI switches from one port to the other port as temperature of liquid changes from 0°C to 100°C.

Development and evaluation of optical fiber NH3 sensors for application in air quality monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Yu; Wieck, Lucas; Tao, Shiquan

2013-02-01

Ammonia is a major air pollutant emitted from agricultural practices. Sources of ammonia include manure from animal feeding operations and fertilizer from cropping systems. Sensor technologies with capability of continuous real time monitoring of ammonia concentration in air are needed to qualify ammonia emissions from agricultural activities and further evaluate human and animal health effects, study ammonia environmental chemistry, and provide baseline data for air quality standard. We have developed fiber optic ammonia sensors using different sensing reagents and different polymers for immobilizing sensing reagents. The reversible fiber optic sensors have detection limits down to low ppbv levels. The response time of these sensors ranges from seconds to tens minutes depending on transducer design. In this paper, we report our results in the development and evaluation of fiber optic sensor technologies for air quality monitoring. The effect of change of temperature, humidity and carbon dioxide concentration on fiber optic ammonia sensors has been investigated. Carbon dioxide in air was found not interfere the fiber optic sensors for monitoring NH3. However, the change of humidity can cause interferences to some fiber optic NH3 sensors depending on the sensor's transducer design. The sensitivity of fiber optic NH3 sensors was found depends on temperature. Methods and techniques for eliminating these interferences have been proposed.

Fiber optic sensors for infrastructure applications

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1998-02-01

Fiber optic sensor technology offers the possibility of implementing "nervous systems" for infrastructure elements that allow high performance, cost effective health and damage assessment systems to be achieved. This is possible, largely due to syner...

Fiber optic temperature sensor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Quick, William H. (Inventor); August, Rudolf R. (Inventor); James, Kenneth A. (Inventor); Strahan, Jr., Virgil H. (Inventor); Nichols, Donald K. (Inventor)

1980-01-01

An inexpensive, lightweight fiber optic micro-sensor that is suitable for applications which may require remote temperature sensing. The disclosed temperature sensor includes a phosphor material that, after receiving incident light stimulation, is adapted to emit phosphorescent radiation output signals, the amplitude decay rate and wavelength of which are functions of the sensed temperature.

Roadmap on optical sensors.

PubMed

Ferreira, Mário F S; Castro-Camus, Enrique; Ottaway, David J; López-Higuera, José Miguel; Feng, Xian; Jin, Wei; Jeong, Yoonchan; Picqué, Nathalie; Tong, Limin; Reinhard, Björn M; Pellegrino, Paul M; Méndez, Alexis; Diem, Max; Vollmer, Frank; Quan, Qimin

2017-08-01

Sensors are devices or systems able to detect, measure and convert magnitudes from any domain to an electrical one. Using light as a probe for optical sensing is one of the most efficient approaches for this purpose. The history of optical sensing using some methods based on absorbance, emissive and florescence properties date back to the 16th century. The field of optical sensors evolved during the following centuries, but it did not achieve maturity until the demonstration of the first laser in 1960. The unique properties of laser light become particularly important in the case of laser-based sensors, whose operation is entirely based upon the direct detection of laser light itself, without relying on any additional mediating device. However, compared with freely propagating light beams, artificially engineered optical fields are in increasing demand for probing samples with very small sizes and/or weak light-matter interaction. Optical fiber sensors constitute a subarea of optical sensors in which fiber technologies are employed. Different types of specialty and photonic crystal fibers provide improved performance and novel sensing concepts. Actually, structurization with wavelength or subwavelength feature size appears as the most efficient way to enhance sensor sensitivity and its detection limit. This leads to the area of micro- and nano-engineered optical sensors. It is expected that the combination of better fabrication techniques and new physical effects may open new and fascinating opportunities in this area. This roadmap on optical sensors addresses different technologies and application areas of the field. Fourteen contributions authored by experts from both industry and academia provide insights into the current state-of-the-art and the challenges faced by researchers currently. Two sections of this paper provide an overview of laser-based and frequency comb-based sensors. Three sections address the area of optical fiber sensors, encompassing both conventional, specialty and photonic crystal fibers. Several other sections are dedicated to micro- and nano-engineered sensors, including whispering-gallery mode and plasmonic sensors. The uses of optical sensors in chemical, biological and biomedical areas are described in other sections. Different approaches required to satisfy applications at visible, infrared and THz spectral regions are also discussed. Advances in science and technology required to meet challenges faced in each of these areas are addressed, together with suggestions on how the field could evolve in the near future.

Roadmap on optical sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ferreira, Mário F. S.; Castro-Camus, Enrique; Ottaway, David J.; López-Higuera, José Miguel; Feng, Xian; Jin, Wei; Jeong, Yoonchan; Picqué, Nathalie; Tong, Limin; Reinhard, Björn M.; Pellegrino, Paul M.; Méndez, Alexis; Diem, Max; Vollmer, Frank; Quan, Qimin

2017-08-01

Sensors are devices or systems able to detect, measure and convert magnitudes from any domain to an electrical one. Using light as a probe for optical sensing is one of the most efficient approaches for this purpose. The history of optical sensing using some methods based on absorbance, emissive and florescence properties date back to the 16th century. The field of optical sensors evolved during the following centuries, but it did not achieve maturity until the demonstration of the first laser in 1960. The unique properties of laser light become particularly important in the case of laser-based sensors, whose operation is entirely based upon the direct detection of laser light itself, without relying on any additional mediating device. However, compared with freely propagating light beams, artificially engineered optical fields are in increasing demand for probing samples with very small sizes and/or weak light-matter interaction. Optical fiber sensors constitute a subarea of optical sensors in which fiber technologies are employed. Different types of specialty and photonic crystal fibers provide improved performance and novel sensing concepts. Actually, structurization with wavelength or subwavelength feature size appears as the most efficient way to enhance sensor sensitivity and its detection limit. This leads to the area of micro- and nano-engineered optical sensors. It is expected that the combination of better fabrication techniques and new physical effects may open new and fascinating opportunities in this area. This roadmap on optical sensors addresses different technologies and application areas of the field. Fourteen contributions authored by experts from both industry and academia provide insights into the current state-of-the-art and the challenges faced by researchers currently. Two sections of this paper provide an overview of laser-based and frequency comb-based sensors. Three sections address the area of optical fiber sensors, encompassing both conventional, specialty and photonic crystal fibers. Several other sections are dedicated to micro- and nano-engineered sensors, including whispering-gallery mode and plasmonic sensors. The uses of optical sensors in chemical, biological and biomedical areas are described in other sections. Different approaches required to satisfy applications at visible, infrared and THz spectral regions are also discussed. Advances in science and technology required to meet challenges faced in each of these areas are addressed, together with suggestions on how the field could evolve in the near future.

Study of a computer-controlled integrated optical gas-concentration sensor

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Egorov, A A; Egorov, M A; Chekhlova, T K

2008-08-31

A computer-controlled integrated optical waveguide sensor based on an optical waveguide of the diffusion type with the low attenuation coefficient is developed and studied. It is shown that the response time of the sensor is {approx}0.15 s. According to tests and computer simulations, the sensor can detect gaseous ammonia in air with the limiting theoretical concentration of {approx}0.1 ppm for the signal-to-noise ratio no less than 20. (laser applications and other topics in quantum electronics)

LASER APPLICATIONS AND OTHER TOPICS IN QUANTUM ELECTRONICS: Study of a computer-controlled integrated optical gas-concentration sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Egorov, A. A.; Egorov, M. A.; Chekhlova, T. K.; Timakin, A. G.

2008-08-01

A computer-controlled integrated optical waveguide sensor based on an optical waveguide of the diffusion type with the low attenuation coefficient is developed and studied. It is shown that the response time of the sensor is ≈0.15 s. According to tests and computer simulations, the sensor can detect gaseous ammonia in air with the limiting theoretical concentration of ≈0.1 ppm for the signal-to-noise ratio no less than 20.

Research of pressure sensor based on the fiber Bragg grating for permanent downwell monitoring application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Lina; Long, Pin; Liu, Tiegen

2004-11-01

Timely, accurate and reliable pressure information about how the reservoir is performing is an important component to optimizing oil yield and production rates. This paper reviews the use of fiber optical pressure sensor for downhole monitoring in the oil industry. Several types of pressure transducer with different characteristics have been introduced. Due to their multiplexing capabilities and versatility ,the use of Bragg grating sensors appears to be particularly suited for this application. A sensor for accurate and long term fluid pressure monitoring based on optical fiber Bragg gratings(FBGs) is developed. The sensor converts fluid pressure into optical fiber strain by means of a mechanical transducer to enhance its sensitivity to pressure. It can also implement distributed or multiplexed sensing. The sensor operation is studied at pressure up to 100 Mpa(1000bar) and the tested temperature to ~175°. It is possible to be used in the well.

Infrared-fiber-optic fire sensor developments - Role of measurement uncertainty in evaluation of background limited range. [in spacecraft safety

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tapphorn, Ralph M.; Kays, Randy; Porter, Alan

1989-01-01

Fire-detector systems based on distributed infrared fiber-sensors have been investigated for potential applications in the aerospace industry. Responsivities to blackbody and flame radiations were measured with various design configurations of an infrared fiber-optic sensor. Signal processing techniques were also investigated, and the results show significant differences in the fire-sensor performance depending on the design configuration. Measurement uncertainties were used to determine the background-limited ranges for the various fire-sensor concepts, and the probability of producing false alarms caused by fluctuations in the background signals were determined using extreme probability theory. The results of the research show that infrared fiber-optic fire sensors are feasible for application on manned spacecraft; however, additional development work will be required to eliminate false alarms caused by high temperature objects such as incandescent lamps.

Electrooptic polymer voltage sensor and method of manufacture thereof

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gottsche, Allan (Inventor); Perry, Joseph W. (Inventor)

1993-01-01

An optical voltage sensor utilizing an electrooptic polymer is disclosed for application to electric power distribution systems. The sensor, which can be manufactured at low cost in accordance with a disclosed method, measures voltages across a greater range than prior art sensors. The electrooptic polymer, which replaces the optical crystal used in prior art sensors, is sandwiched directly between two high voltage electrodes. Voltage is measured by fiber optical means, and no voltage division is required. The sample of electrooptic polymer is fabricated in a special mold and later mounted in a sensor housing. Alternatively, mold and sensor housing may be identical. The sensor housing is made out of a machinable polymeric material and is equipped with two opposing optical windows. The optical windows are mounted in the bottom of machined holes in the wall of the mold. These holes provide for mounting of the polarizing optical components and for mounting of the fiber optic connectors. One connecting fiber is equipped with a light emitting diode as a light source. Another connecting fiber is equipped with a photodiode as a detector.

Miniaturized photoacoustic spectrometer

DOEpatents

Okandan, Murat; Robinson, Alex; Nielson, Gregory N.; Resnick, Paul J.

2016-08-09

A low-power miniaturized photoacoustic sensor uses an optical microphone made by semiconductor fabrication techniques, and optionally allows for all-optical communication to and from the sensor. This allows integration of the photoacoustic sensor into systems with special requirements, such as those that would be reactive in an electrical discharge condition. The photoacoustic sensor can also be operated in various other modes with wide application flexibility.

Fiber-Optic Distribution Of Pulsed Power To Multiple Sensors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kirkham, Harold

1996-01-01

Optoelectronic systems designed according to time-sharing scheme distribute optical power to multiple integrated-circuit-based sensors in fiber-optic networks. Networks combine flexibility of electronic sensing circuits with advantage of electrical isolation afforded by use of optical fibers instead of electrical conductors to transmit both signals and power. Fiber optics resist corrosion and immune to electromagnetic interference. Sensor networks of this type useful in variety of applications; for example, in monitoring strains in aircraft, buildings, and bridges, and in monitoring and controlling shapes of flexible structures.

From conventional sensors to fibre optic sensors for strain and force measurements in biomechanics applications: a review.

PubMed

Roriz, Paulo; Carvalho, Lídia; Frazão, Orlando; Santos, José Luís; Simões, José António

2014-04-11

In vivo measurement, not only in animals but also in humans, is a demanding task and is the ultimate goal in experimental biomechanics. For that purpose, measurements in vivo must be performed, under physiological conditions, to obtain a database and contribute for the development of analytical models, used to describe human biomechanics. The knowledge and control of the mechanisms involved in biomechanics will allow the optimization of the performance in different topics like in clinical procedures and rehabilitation, medical devices and sports, among others. Strain gages were first applied to bone in a live animal in 40's and in 80's for the first time were applied fibre optic sensors to perform in vivo measurements of Achilles tendon forces in man. Fibre optic sensors proven to have advantages compare to conventional sensors and a great potential for biomechanical and biomedical applications. Compared to them, they are smaller, easier to implement, minimally invasive, with lower risk of infection, highly accurate, well correlated, inexpensive and multiplexable. The aim of this review article is to give an overview about the evolution of the experimental techniques applied in biomechanics, from conventional to fibre optic sensors. In the next sections the most relevant contributions of these sensors, for strain and force in biomechanical applications, will be presented. Emphasis was given to report of in vivo experiments and clinical applications. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sensitive zone parameters and curvature radius evaluation for polymer optical fiber curvature sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leal-Junior, Arnaldo G.; Frizera, Anselmo; José Pontes, Maria

2018-03-01

Polymer optical fibers (POFs) are suitable for applications such as curvature sensors, strain, temperature, liquid level, among others. However, for enhancing sensitivity, many polymer optical fiber curvature sensors based on intensity variation require a lateral section. Lateral section length, depth, and surface roughness have great influence on the sensor sensitivity, hysteresis, and linearity. Moreover, the sensor curvature radius increase the stress on the fiber, which leads on variation of the sensor behavior. This paper presents the analysis relating the curvature radius and lateral section length, depth and surface roughness with the sensor sensitivity, hysteresis and linearity for a POF curvature sensor. Results show a strong correlation between the decision parameters behavior and the performance for sensor applications based on intensity variation. Furthermore, there is a trade-off among the sensitive zone length, depth, surface roughness, and curvature radius with the sensor desired performance parameters, which are minimum hysteresis, maximum sensitivity, and maximum linearity. The optimization of these parameters is applied to obtain a sensor with sensitivity of 20.9 mV/°, linearity of 0.9992 and hysteresis below 1%, which represent a better performance of the sensor when compared with the sensor without the optimization.

Instrumentation and data acquisition for satellite testing in nuclear environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Samyal, B.; Naumann, W.

1982-06-01

Electro-optic and magnetic-optic sensors for measurement of SGEMP-induced electromagnetic fields in and around a satellite in a UGT environment and a fiber optic data link suitable for relaying analog measurements inside the satellite to outside data collection devices are described. The electro-optic and magneto-optic sensors are based on the Pockels and Faraday Effects, respectively. The former has a sensitivity range of 10 to the second power - 10 to the 6th power v/m and the latter 1 x 10 to the minus 6th power - 34 x 10 to the minus 4th power Weber/meters square. Brief theoretical reviews and optical systems for the application of these sensors are presented. These sensors have several advantages over the conventional electrical sensors and they exhibit a great potential for measurement of electromagenetic fields. However, the effects of radiation on these sensors are uncertain and need to be assessed for any future development of these sensors. The fiber optic data link consists of several transmitter modules, located at the satellite, connected by optical fibers to the corresponding receiver modules located at a radiation safe alcove.

Fiber optic sensors for infrastructure applications : final report.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1998-02-01

Fiber optic sensor technology offers the possibility of implementing "nervous systems" for infrastructure elements that allow high performance, cost effective health and damage assessment systems to be achieved. This is possible, largely due to syner...

Fiber optic systems for colorimetry and scattered colorimetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mignani, Anna G.; Mencaglia, Andrea A.; Ciaccheri, Leonardo

2005-09-01

An innovative series of optical fiber sensors based on spectroscopic interrogation is presented. The sensors are custom-designed for a wide range of applications, including gasoline colorimetry, chromium monitoring of sewage, museum lighting control, for use with a platform for interrogating an array of absorption-based chemical sensors, as well as for color and turbidity measurements. Two types of custom-design instrumentation have been developed, both making use of LED light sources and a low-cost optical fiber spectrometer to perform broadband spectral measurements in the visible spectral range. The first was designed especially to address color-based sensors, while the second assessed the combined color and turbidity of edible liquids such as olive oil. Both are potentially exploitable in other industrial and environmental applications.

Single mode tapered fiber-optic interferometer based refractive index sensor and its application to protein sensing.

PubMed

Yadav, T K; Narayanaswamy, R; Abu Bakar, M H; Kamil, Y Mustapha; Mahdi, M A

2014-09-22

We demonstrate refractive index sensors based on single mode tapered fiber and its application as a biosensor. We utilize this tapered fiber optic biosensor, operating at 1550 nm, for the detection of protein (gelatin) concentration in water. The sensor is based on the spectroscopy of mode coupling based on core modes-fiber cladding modes excited by the fundamental core mode of an optical fiber when it transitions into tapered regions from untapered regions. The changes are determined from the wavelength shift of the transmission spectrum. The proposed fiber sensor has sensitivity of refractive index around 1500 nm/RIU and for protein concentration detection, its highest sensitivity is 2.42141 nm/%W/V.

Smart fabrics: integrating fiber optic sensors and information networks.

PubMed

El-Sherif, Mahmoud

2004-01-01

"Smart Fabrics" are defined as fabrics capable of monitoring their own "health", and sensing environmental conditions. They consist of special type of sensors, signal processing, and communication network embedded into textile substrate. Available conventional sensors and networking systems are not fully technologically mature for such applications. New classes of miniature sensors, signal processing and networking systems are urgently needed for such application. Also, the methodology for integration into textile structures has to be developed. In this paper, the development of smart fabrics with embedded fiber optic systems is presented for applications in health monitoring and diagnostics. Successful development of such smart fabrics with embedded sensors and networks is mainly dependent on the development of the proper miniature sensors technology, and on the integration of these sensors into textile structures. The developed smart fabrics will be discussed and samples of the results will be presented.

Optical Sensors Using Stimulated Brillouin Scattering

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Christensen, Caleb A (Inventor); Zavriyev, Anton (Inventor)

2017-01-01

A method for enhancing a sensitivity of an optical sensor having an optical cavity counter-propagates beams of pump light within the optical cavity to produce scattered light based on Stimulated Brillouin Scattering (SBS). The properties of the pump light are selected to generate fast-light conditions for the scattered light, such that the scattered light includes counter-propagating beams of fast light. The method prevents the pump light from resonating within the optical cavity, while allowing the scattered light to resonate within the optical cavity. At least portions of the scattered light are interfered outside of the optical cavity to produce a beat note for a measurement of the optical sensor. The disclosed method is particularly applicable to optical gyroscopes.

Optical-fibre sensor system for monitoring the performance of the gas propellant centrifuge separator of a spacecraft

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Romo-Medrano, Katya E.; Khotiaintsev, Sergei N.; García-Garduño, Victor

2004-08-01

An optical-fibre sensor system is presented for monitoring void fraction distribution in a spacecraft's gas and propellant centrifuge separator. The system could be used at the separator development stage or for monitoring, during ground tests, the elements of the spacecraft propulsion system. Our sensor system employs an array of point optical-fibre refractometric transducers installed in the form of several linear radial arrays on the separator rotating blades. We employed a small-size hemispherical optical detection element as the transducer and we optimized its parameters through numerical ray-tracing. The aim is to minimize the effect of the thin film of liquid that forms on the transducer's surface in this application. The features of this sensor system are: (1) an efficient matrix-type multiplexing scheme, (2) the installation of the main optoelectronic unit of the sensor in a hermetically sealed container inside the separator tank located on the rotating shaft and (3) the spark-proof and explosion-proof design of the sensor circuits and elements. The sensor is simple, reliable, low-cost and is capable of withstanding the factors involved during operation of the propulsion system such as cryogenic temperatures and chemically aggressive liquids. The novel elements and design concepts implemented in this sensor system can also find applications in other sensors for spacecraft propulsion systems and also in a variety of optical-fibre sensors used in scientific research and industry.

Recent Advances in the Design of Electro-Optic Sensors for Minimally Destructive Microwave Field Probing

PubMed Central

Lee, Dong-Joon; Kang, No-Weon; Choi, Jun-Ho; Kim, Junyeon; Whitaker, John F.

2011-01-01

In this paper we review recent design methodologies for fully dielectric electro-optic sensors that have applications in non-destructive evaluation (NDE) of devices and materials that radiate, guide, or otherwise may be impacted by microwave fields. In many practical NDE situations, fiber-coupled-sensor configurations are preferred due to their advantages over free-space bulk sensors in terms of optical alignment, spatial resolution, and especially, a low degree of field invasiveness. We propose and review five distinct types of fiber-coupled electro-optic sensor probes. The design guidelines for each probe type and their performances in absolute electric-field measurements are compared and summarized. PMID:22346604

Differential optical shadow sensor for sub-nanometer displacement measurement and its application to drag-free satellites.

PubMed

Zoellner, Andreas; Tan, Si; Saraf, Shailendhar; Alfauwaz, Abdul; DeBra, Dan; Buchman, Sasha; Lipa, John A

2017-10-16

We present a method for 3D sub-nanometer displacement measurement using a set of differential optical shadow sensors. It is based on using pairs of collimated beams on opposite sides of an object that are partially blocked by it. Applied to a sphere, our 3-axis sensor module consists of 8 parallel beam-detector sets for redundancy. The sphere blocks half of each beam's power in the nominal centered position, and any displacement can be measured by the differential optical power changes amongst the pairs of detectors. We have experimentally demonstrated a displacement sensitivity of 0.87nm/Hz at 1 Hz and 0.39nm/Hz at 10 Hz. We describe the application of the module to the inertial sensor of a drag-free satellite, which can potentially be used for navigation, geodesy and fundamental science experiments as well as ground based applications.

Recent advances in integrated photonic sensors.

PubMed

Passaro, Vittorio M N; de Tullio, Corrado; Troia, Benedetto; La Notte, Mario; Giannoccaro, Giovanni; De Leonardis, Francesco

2012-11-09

Nowadays, optical devices and circuits are becoming fundamental components in several application fields such as medicine, biotechnology, automotive, aerospace, food quality control, chemistry, to name a few. In this context, we propose a complete review on integrated photonic sensors, with specific attention to materials, technologies, architectures and optical sensing principles. To this aim, sensing principles commonly used in optical detection are presented, focusing on sensor performance features such as sensitivity, selectivity and rangeability. Since photonic sensors provide substantial benefits regarding compatibility with CMOS technology and integration on chips characterized by micrometric footprints, design and optimization strategies of photonic devices are widely discussed for sensing applications. In addition, several numerical methods employed in photonic circuits and devices, simulations and design are presented, focusing on their advantages and drawbacks. Finally, recent developments in the field of photonic sensing are reviewed, considering advanced photonic sensor architectures based on linear and non-linear optical effects and to be employed in chemical/biochemical sensing, angular velocity and electric field detection.

Recent Advances in Integrated Photonic Sensors

PubMed Central

Passaro, Vittorio M. N.; de Tullio, Corrado; Troia, Benedetto; La Notte, Mario; Giannoccaro, Giovanni; De Leonardis, Francesco

2012-01-01

Nowadays, optical devices and circuits are becoming fundamental components in several application fields such as medicine, biotechnology, automotive, aerospace, food quality control, chemistry, to name a few. In this context, we propose a complete review on integrated photonic sensors, with specific attention to materials, technologies, architectures and optical sensing principles. To this aim, sensing principles commonly used in optical detection are presented, focusing on sensor performance features such as sensitivity, selectivity and rangeability. Since photonic sensors provide substantial benefits regarding compatibility with CMOS technology and integration on chips characterized by micrometric footprints, design and optimization strategies of photonic devices are widely discussed for sensing applications. In addition, several numerical methods employed in photonic circuits and devices, simulations and design are presented, focusing on their advantages and drawbacks. Finally, recent developments in the field of photonic sensing are reviewed, considering advanced photonic sensor architectures based on linear and non-linear optical effects and to be employed in chemical/biochemical sensing, angular velocity and electric field detection. PMID:23202223

Electro-optical rendezvous and docking sensors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tubbs, David J.; Kesler, Lynn O.; Sirko, Robert J.

1991-01-01

Electro-optical sensors provide unique and critical functionality for space missions requiring rendezvous, docking, and berthing. McDonnell Douglas is developing a complete rendezvous and docking system for both manned and unmanned missions. This paper examines our sensor development and the systems and missions which benefit from rendezvous and docking sensors. Simulation results quantifying system performance improvements in key areas are given, with associated sensor performance requirements. A brief review of NASA-funded development activities and the current performance of electro-optical sensors for space applications is given. We will also describe current activities at McDonnell Douglas for a fully functional demonstration to address specific NASA mission needs.

Fiber-optic sensors for aerospace electrical measurements: An update

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Patterson, Richard L.; Rose, A. H.; Tang, D.; Day, G. W.

1991-01-01

Fiber-optic sensors are being developed for electrical current, voltage, and power measurements in aerospace applications. These sensors are presently designed to cover ac frequencies from 60 Hz to 20 kHz. The current sensor, based on the Faraday effect in optical fiber, is in advanced development after some initial testing. Concentration is on packaging methods and ways to maintain consistent sensitivity with changes in temperature. The voltage sensor, utilizing the Pockels effect in a crystal, has excelled in temperature tests. This paper reports on the development of these sensors, the results of evaluation, improvements now in progress, and the future direction of the work.

Optical Riblet Sensor: Beam Parameter Requirements for the Probing Laser Source.

PubMed

Tschentscher, Juliane; Hochheim, Sven; Brüning, Hauke; Brune, Kai; Voit, Kay-Michael; Imlau, Mirco

2016-03-30

Beam parameters of a probing laser source in an optical riblet sensor are studied by considering the high demands on a sensors' precision and reliability for the determination of deviations of the geometrical shape of a riblet. Mandatory requirements, such as minimum intensity and light polarization, are obtained by means of detailed inspection of the optical response of the riblet using ray and wave optics; the impact of wavelength is studied. Novel measures for analyzing the riblet shape without the necessity of a measurement with a reference sample are derived; reference values for an ideal riblet structure obtained with the optical riblet sensor are given. The application of a low-cost, frequency-doubled Nd:YVO₄ laser pointer sufficient to serve as a reliable laser source in an appropriate optical riblet sensor is discussed.

High-Temperature Optical Sensor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Adamovsky, Grigory; Juergens, Jeffrey R.; Varga, Donald J.; Floyd, Bertram M.

2010-01-01

A high-temperature optical sensor (see Figure 1) has been developed that can operate at temperatures up to 1,000 C. The sensor development process consists of two parts: packaging of a fiber Bragg grating into a housing that allows a more sturdy thermally stable device, and a technological process to which the device is subjected to in order to meet environmental requirements of several hundred C. This technology uses a newly discovered phenomenon of the formation of thermally stable secondary Bragg gratings in communication-grade fibers at high temperatures to construct robust, optical, high-temperature sensors. Testing and performance evaluation (see Figure 2) of packaged sensors demonstrated operability of the devices at 1,000 C for several hundred hours, and during numerous thermal cycling from 400 to 800 C with different heating rates. The technology significantly extends applicability of optical sensors to high-temperature environments including ground testing of engines, flight propulsion control, thermal protection monitoring of launch vehicles, etc. It may also find applications in such non-aerospace arenas as monitoring of nuclear reactors, furnaces, chemical processes, and other hightemperature environments where other measurement techniques are either unreliable, dangerous, undesirable, or unavailable.

Fiber optic smart structures and skins V; Proceedings of the Meeting, Boston, MA, Sept. 8, 9, 1992

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Claus, Richard O. (Editor); Rogowski, Robert S. (Editor)

1993-01-01

The present conference discusses the materials used in applications of fiber-optics (F-O) to smart structures, extrinsic Fabry-Perot interferometric F-O sensors, sapphire F-O sensors, two-mode F-O sensors with photoinduced refractive index, an F-O accelerometer using two-mode fibers, and embedded F-O acoustic sensors for flaw detection. Also discussed are an optoelectronic smart structure interface, F-O sensors for simultaneous detection of strain and temperature, an optical Mach-Zehnder interferometer for smart skins, a split-cavity cross-coupled extrinsic fiber interferometer, and an embedded Bragg grating F-O sensor for composite flexbeams, an Er-doped ring-laser strain sensor.

Fibre optic system for biochemical and microbiological sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Penwill, L. A.; Slater, J. H.; Hayes, N. W.; Tremlett, C. J.

2007-07-01

This poster will discuss state-of-the-art fibre optic sensors based on evanescent wave technology emphasising chemophotonic sensors for biochemical reactions and microbe detection. Devices based on antibody specificity and unique DNA sequences will be described. The development of simple sensor devices with disposable single use sensor probes will be illustrated with a view to providing cost effective field based or point of care analysis of major themes such as hospital acquired infections or bioterrorism events. This presentation will discuss the nature and detection thresholds required, the optical detection techniques investigated, results of sensor trials and the potential for wider commercial application.

Fiber Optic Control System Integration program: for optical flight control system development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weaver, Thomas L.; Seal, Daniel W.

1994-10-01

Hardware and software were developed for optical feedback links in the flight control system of an F/A-18 aircraft. Developments included passive optical sensors and optoelectronics to operate the sensors. Sensors with different methods of operation were obtained from different manufacturers and integrated with common optoelectronics. The sensors were the following: Air Data Temperature; Air Data Pressure; and Leading Edge Flap, Nose Wheel Steering, Trailing Edge Flap, Pitch Stick, Rudder, Rudder Pedal, Stabilator, and Engine Power Lever Control Position. The sensors were built for a variety of aircraft locations and harsh environments. The sensors and optoelectronics were as similar as practical to a production system. The integrated system was installed by NASA for flight testing. Wavelength Division Multiplexing proved successful as a system design philosophy. Some sensors appeared to be better choices for aircraft applications than others, with digital sensors generally being better than analog sensors, and rotary sensors generally being better than linear sensors. The most successful sensor approaches were selected for use in a follow-on program in which the sensors will not just be flown on the aircraft and their performance recorded; but, the optical sensors will be used in closing flight control loops.

Optical signal processing of spatially distributed sensor data in smart structures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bennett, K. D.; Claus, R. O.; Murphy, K. A.; Goette, A. M.

1989-01-01

Smart structures which contain dense two- or three-dimensional arrays of attached or embedded sensor elements inherently require signal multiplexing and processing capabilities to permit good spatial data resolution as well as the adequately short calculation times demanded by real time active feedback actuator drive circuitry. This paper reports the implementation of an in-line optical signal processor and its application in a structural sensing system which incorporates multiple discrete optical fiber sensor elements. The signal processor consists of an array of optical fiber couplers having tailored s-parameters and arranged to allow gray code amplitude scaling of sensor inputs. The use of this signal processor in systems designed to indicate the location of distributed strain and damage in composite materials, as well as to quantitatively characterize that damage, is described. Extension of similar signal processing methods to more complicated smart materials and structures applications are discussed.

Voltage Sensor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1996-01-01

Under a Lewis Research Center Small Business Innovation Research contract, SRICO, Inc. developed a fiber optic voltage sensor to measure voltage in electronic systems in spacecraft. The sensor uses glass and light to sense and transmit electricity, and is relatively safe and accurate. SRICO then commercialized the sensor for measurement of electric field and voltage in applications such as electric power systems and hazardous environments, lightning detection, and fiber optic communication systems.

Integrating Fiber Optic Strain Sensors into Metal Using Ultrasonic Additive Manufacturing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hehr, Adam; Norfolk, Mark; Wenning, Justin; Sheridan, John; Leser, Paul; Leser, Patrick; Newman, John A.

2018-03-01

Ultrasonic additive manufacturing, a rather new three-dimensional (3D) printing technology, uses ultrasonic energy to produce metallurgical bonds between layers of metal foils near room temperature. This low temperature attribute of the process enables integration of temperature sensitive components, such as fiber optic strain sensors, directly into metal structures. This may be an enabling technology for Digital Twin applications, i.e., virtual model interaction and feedback with live load data. This study evaluates the consolidation quality, interface robustness, and load sensing limits of commercially available fiber optic strain sensors embedded into aluminum alloy 6061. Lastly, an outlook on the technology and its applications is described.

Highly-hermetic feedthrough fiber pigtailed circular TO-can electro-optic sensor for avionics applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lauzon, Jocelyn; Leduc, Lorrain; Bessette, Daniel; Bélanger, Nicolas

2012-06-01

Electro-optic sensors made of lasers or photodetectors assemblies can be associated with a window interface. In order to use these sensors in an avionics application, this interface has to be set on the periphery of the aircraft. This creates constraints on both the position/access of the associated electronics circuit card and the aircraft fuselage. Using an optical fiber to guide the light signal to a sensor being situated inside the aircraft where electronics circuit cards are deployed is an obvious solution that can be readily available. Fiber collimators that adapt to circular TO-can type window sensors do exist. However, they are bulky, add weight to the sensor and necessitate regular maintenance of the optical interface since both the sensor window and the collimator end-face are unprotected against contamination. Such maintenance can be complex since the access to the electronics circuit card, where the sensor is sitting, is usually difficult. This interface alignment can also be affected by vibrations and mechanical shocks, thus impacting sensor performances. As a solution to this problem, we propose a highly-hermetic feedthrough fiber pigtailed circular TO-can package. The optical element to optical fiber interface being set inside the hermetic package, there is no risk of contamination and thus, such a component does not require any maintenance. The footprint of these sensors being identical to their window counterparts, they offer drop-in replacement opportunities. Moreover, we have validated such packaged electro-optic sensors can be made to operate between -55 to 115°C, sustain 250 temperature cycles, 1500G mechanical shocks, 20Grms random vibrations without any performance degradations. Their water content is much smaller than the 0.5% limit set by MIL-STD-883, Method 1018. They have also been verified to offer a fiber pigtail strain relief resistance over 400g. Depending on the electronics elements inside these sensors, they can be made to have a MTBF over 50 000h at 100°C.

System-on-chip-centric unattended embedded sensors in homeland security and defense applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jannson, Tomasz; Forrester, Thomas; Degrood, Kevin; Shih, Min-Yi; Walter, Kevin; Lee, Kang; Gans, Eric; Esterkin, Vladimir

2009-05-01

System-on-chip (SoC) single-die electronic integrated circuit (IC) integration has recently been attracting a great deal of attention, due to its high modularity, universality, and relatively low fabrication cost. The SoC also has low power consumption and it is naturally suited to being a base for integration of embedded sensors. Such sensors can run unattended, and can be either commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) electronic, COTS microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), or optical-COTS or produced in house (i.e., at Physical Optics Corporation, POC). In the version with the simplest electronic packaging, they can be integrated with low-power wireless RF that can communicate with a central processing unit (CPU) integrated in-house and installed on the specific platform of interest. Such a platform can be a human body (for e-clothing), unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), unmanned ground vehicle (UGV), or many others. In this paper we discuss SoC-centric embedded unattended sensors in Homeland Security and military applications, including specific application scenarios (or CONOPS). In one specific example, we analyze an embedded polarization optical sensor produced in house, including generalized Lambertian light-emitting diode (LED) sources and secondary nonimaging optics (NIO).

Design of fiber optic based respiratory sensor for newborn incubator application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dhia, Arika; Devara, Kresna; Abuzairi, Tomy; Poespawati, N. R.; Purnamaningsih, Retno W.

2018-02-01

This paper reports the design of respiratory sensor using fiber optic for newborn incubator application. The sensor works based on light intensity losses difference obtained due to thorax movement during respiration. The output of the sensor launched to support electronic circuits to be processed in Arduino Uno microcontroler such that the real-time respiratory rate (breath per minute) can be presented on LCD. Experiment results using thorax expansion of newborn simulator show that the system is able to measure respiratory rate from 10 up to 130 breaths per minute with 0.595% error and 0.2% hysteresis error.

Infrared fiber-optic fire sensors - Concepts and designs for Space Station applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tapphorn, Ralph M.; Porter, Alan R.

1990-01-01

Various design configurations used for testing IR fiber-optic (IFO) fire-sensor concepts are presented. Responsibility measurements conducted to select the best concept are reviewed. The results indicate that IFO fire-sensor systems based on distributed fiber sensors are feasible for future aerospace applications. For Space Station Freedom, these systems offer alternative fire detectors for monitoring areas within equipment or stage compartments where the ventilation may be inadequate for proper operation of smoke detectors. They also allow a large number of areas to be monitored by a single central detector unit, which reduces the associated cost and weight.

Optical and Electric Multifunctional CMOS Image Sensors for On-Chip Biosensing Applications

PubMed Central

Tokuda, Takashi; Noda, Toshihiko; Sasagawa, Kiyotaka; Ohta, Jun

2010-01-01

In this review, the concept, design, performance, and a functional demonstration of multifunctional complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) image sensors dedicated to on-chip biosensing applications are described. We developed a sensor architecture that allows flexible configuration of a sensing pixel array consisting of optical and electric sensing pixels, and designed multifunctional CMOS image sensors that can sense light intensity and electric potential or apply a voltage to an on-chip measurement target. We describe the sensors’ architecture on the basis of the type of electric measurement or imaging functionalities. PMID:28879978

Development of Planar Optics for an Optical Tracking Sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kawano, Hiroyuki; Sasagawa, Tomohiro

1998-10-01

An optical tracking sensor for large-capacity flexible disk drive (FDD) is demonstrated. The passive optics is compact and lightweight (5.4 mm length×3.6 mm width×1.2 mm height in size and 18 mg weight). It comprises all passive optical elements necessary for optical tracking, e.g., a focusing lens, a three-beam grating, an aperture and a beam splitter grating. Three beams were focused to a predetermined spot size of 13 µm at designed intervals of 110 µm on a disk surface and the reflected beams were successfully guided to photodiodes. This confirms that the application of the planar optical technique is very useful for realizing a compact and light optical sensor.

Application of Fiber Optic Instrumentation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Richards, William Lance; Parker, Allen R., Jr.; Ko, William L.; Piazza, Anthony; Chan, Patrick

2012-01-01

Fiber optic sensing technology has emerged in recent years offering tremendous advantages over conventional aircraft instrumentation systems. The advantages of fiber optic sensors over their conventional counterparts are well established; they are lighter, smaller, and can provide enormous numbers of measurements at a fraction of the total sensor weight. After a brief overview of conventional and fiber-optic sensing technology, this paper presents an overview of the research that has been conducted at NASA Dryden Flight Research Center in recent years to advance this promising new technology. Research and development areas include system and algorithm development, sensor characterization and attachment, and real-time experimentally-derived parameter monitoring for ground- and flight-based applications. The vision of fiber optic smart structure technology is presented and its potential benefits to aerospace vehicles throughout the lifecycle, from preliminary design to final retirement, are presented.

Spectroelectrochemistry as a Strategy for Improving Selectivity of Sensors for Security and Defense Applications

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Heineman, William R.; Seliskar, Carl J.; Morris, Laura K.

2012-12-19

Spectroelectrochemistry provides improved selectivity for sensors by electrochemically modulating the optical signal associated with the analyte. The sensor consists of an optically transparent electrode (OTE) coated with a film that preconcentrates the target analyte. The OTE functions as an optical waveguide for attenuated total reflectance (ATR) spectroscopy, which detects the analyte by absorption. Alternatively, the OTE can serve as the excitation light for fluorescence detection, which is generally more sensitive than absorption. The analyte partitions into the film, undergoes an electrochemical redox reaction at the OTE surface, and absorbs or emits light in its oxidized or reduced state. The changemore » in the optical response associated with electrochemical oxidation or reduction at the OTE is used to quantify the analyte. Absorption sensors for metal ion complexes such as [Fe(CN)6]4- and [Ru(bpy)3]2+ and fluorescence sensors for [Ru(bpy)3]2+ and the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon 1-hydroxypyrene have been developed. The sensor concept has been extended to binding assays for a protein using avidin–biotin and 17β-estradiol–anti-estradiol antibodies. The sensor has been demonstrated to measure metal complexes in complex samples such as nuclear waste and natural water. This sensor has qualities needed for security and defense applications that require a high level of selectivity and good detection limits for target analytes in complex samples. Quickly monitoring and designating intent of a nuclear program by measuring the Ru/Tc fission product ratio is such an application.« less

New Optical Sensing Materials for Application in Marine Research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Borisov, S.; Klimant, I.

2012-04-01

Optical chemosensors are versatile analytical tools which find application in numerous fields of science and technology. They proved to be a promising alternative to electrochemical methods and are applied increasingly often in marine research. However, not all state-of-the- art optical chemosensors are suitable for these demanding applications since they do not fully fulfil the requirements of high luminescence brightness, high chemical- and photochemical stability or their spectral properties are not adequate. Therefore, development of new advanced sensing materials is still of utmost importance. Here we present a set of novel optical sensing materials recently developed in the Institute of Analytical Chemistry and Food Chemistry which are optimized for marine applications. Particularly, we present new NIR indicators and sensors for oxygen and pH which feature high brightness and low level of autofluorescence. The oxygen sensors rely on highly photostable metal complexes of benzoporphyrins and azabenzoporphyrins and enable several important applications such as simultaneous monitoring of oxygen and chlorophyll or ultra-fast oxygen monitoring (Eddy correlation). We also developed ulta-sensitive oxygen optodes which enable monitoring in nM range and are primary designed for investigation of oxygen minimum zones. The dynamic range of our new NIR pH indicators based on aza-BODIPY dyes is optimized for the marine environment. A highly sensitive NIR luminescent phosphor (chromium(III) doped yttrium aluminium borate) can be used for non-invasive temperature measurements. Notably, the oxygen, pH sensors and temperature sensors are fully compatible with the commercially available fiber-optic readers (Firesting from PyroScience). An optical CO2 sensor for marine applications employs novel diketopyrrolopyrrol indicators and enables ratiometric imaging using a CCD camera. Oxygen, pH and temperature sensors suitable for lifetime and ratiometric imaging of analytes distribution are also realized. To enable versatility of applications we also obtained a range of nano- and microparticles suitable for intra- and extracellular imaging of the above analytes. Bright ratiometric 2-photon-excitable probes were also developed. Magnetic microparticles are demonstrated to be very promising tools for imaging of oxygen, temperature and other parameters in biofilms, corals etc. since they combine the sensing function with the possibility of external manipulation.

Strain monitoring of bismaleimide composites using embedded microcavity sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaur, Amardeep; Anandan, Sudharshan; Yuan, Lei; Watkins, Steve E.; Chandrashekhara, K.; Xiao, Hai; Phan, Nam

2016-03-01

A type of extrinsic Fabry-Perot interferometer (EFPI) fiber optic sensor, i.e., the microcavity strain sensor, is demonstrated for embedded, high-temperature applications. The sensor is fabricated using a femtosecond (fs) laser. The fs-laser-based fabrication makes the sensor thermally stable to sustain operating temperatures as high as 800°C. The sensor has low sensitivity toward the temperature as compared to its response toward the applied strain. The performance of the EFPI sensor is tested in an embedded application. The host material is carbon fiber/bismaleimide (BMI) composite laminate that offer thermally stable characteristics at high ambient temperatures. The sensor exhibits highly linear response toward the temperature and strain. Analytical work done with embedded optical-fiber sensors using the out-of-autoclave BMI laminate was limited until now. The work presented in this paper offers an insight into the strain and temperature interactions of the embedded sensors with the BMI composites.

Advanced Interrogation of Fiber-Optic Bragg Grating and Fabry-Perot Sensors with KLT Analysis

PubMed Central

Tosi, Daniele

2015-01-01

The Karhunen-Loeve Transform (KLT) is applied to accurate detection of optical fiber sensors in the spectral domain. By processing an optical spectrum, although coarsely sampled, through the KLT, and subsequently processing the obtained eigenvalues, it is possible to decode a plurality of optical sensor results. The KLT returns higher accuracy than other demodulation techniques, despite coarse sampling, and exhibits higher resilience to noise. Three case studies of KLT-based processing are presented, representing most of the current challenges in optical fiber sensing: (1) demodulation of individual sensors, such as Fiber Bragg Gratings (FBGs) and Fabry-Perot Interferometers (FPIs); (2) demodulation of dual (FBG/FPI) sensors; (3) application of reverse KLT to isolate different sensors operating on the same spectrum. A simulative outline is provided to demonstrate the KLT operation and estimate performance; a brief experimental section is also provided to validate accurate FBG and FPI decoding. PMID:26528975

Advanced Interrogation of Fiber-Optic Bragg Grating and Fabry-Perot Sensors with KLT Analysis.

PubMed

Tosi, Daniele

2015-10-29

The Karhunen-Loeve Transform (KLT) is applied to accurate detection of optical fiber sensors in the spectral domain. By processing an optical spectrum, although coarsely sampled, through the KLT, and subsequently processing the obtained eigenvalues, it is possible to decode a plurality of optical sensor results. The KLT returns higher accuracy than other demodulation techniques, despite coarse sampling, and exhibits higher resilience to noise. Three case studies of KLT-based processing are presented, representing most of the current challenges in optical fiber sensing: (1) demodulation of individual sensors, such as Fiber Bragg Gratings (FBGs) and Fabry-Perot Interferometers (FPIs); (2) demodulation of dual (FBG/FPI) sensors; (3) application of reverse KLT to isolate different sensors operating on the same spectrum. A simulative outline is provided to demonstrate the KLT operation and estimate performance; a brief experimental section is also provided to validate accurate FBG and FPI decoding.

A versatile fibre optic sensor interrogation system for the Ariane Launcher based on an electro-optically tuneable laser diode

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Plattner, M. P.; Hirth, F.; Müller, M. S.; Hoffmann, L.; Buck, T. C.; Koch, A. W.

2017-11-01

Availability of reliable flight sensor data and knowledge of the structural behaviour are essential for safe operation of the Ariane launcher. The Ariane launcher is currently monitored by hundreds of electric sensors during test and qualification. Fibre optic sensors are regarded as a potential technique to overcome limitations of recent monitoring systems for the Ariane launcher [1]. These limitations include cumbersome application of sensors and harness as well as a very limited degree of distributed sensing capability. But, in order to exploit the various advantages of fibre optic sensors (high degree of multiplexing, distributed sensing capability, lower mass impact, etc.) dedicated measurement systems have to be developed and investigated. State-of-the-art fibre optic measurement systems often use free beam setups making them bulky and sensitive to vibration impact. Therefore a new measurement system is developed as part of the ESAstudy [2].

Photonic sensor opportunities for distributed and wireless systems in security applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krohn, David

2006-10-01

There are broad ranges of homeland security sensing applications that can be facilitated by distributed fiber optic sensors and photonics integrated wireless systems. These applications include [1]: Pipeline, (Monitoring, Security); Smart structures (Bridges, Tunnels, Dams, Public spaces); Power lines (Monitoring, Security); Transportation security; Chemical/biological detection; Wide area surveillance - perimeter; and Port Security (Underwater surveillance, Cargo container). Many vital assets which cover wide areas, such as pipeline and borders, are under constant threat of being attacked or breached. There is a rapidly emerging need to be able to provide identification of intrusion threats to such vital assets. Similar problems exit for monitoring the basic infrastructure such as water supply, power utilities, communications systems as well as transportation. There is a need to develop a coordinated and integrated solution for the detection of threats. From a sensor standpoint, consideration must not be limited to detection, but how does detection lead to intervention and deterrence. Fiber optic sensor technology must be compatible with other surveillance technologies such as wireless mote technology to facilitate integration. In addition, the multi-functionality of fiber optic sensors must be expanded to include bio-chemical detection. There have been a number of barriers for the acceptance and broad use of smart fiber optic sensors. Compared to telecommunications, the volume is low. This fact coupled with proprietary and custom specifications has kept the price of fiber optic sensors high. There is a general lack of a manufacturing infrastructure and lack of standards for packaging and reliability. Also, there are several competing technologies; some photonic based and other approaches based on conventional non-photonic technologies.

A magneto-electro-optical effect in a plasmonic nanowire material

PubMed Central

Valente, João; Ou, Jun-Yu; Plum, Eric; Youngs, Ian J.; Zheludev, Nikolay I.

2015-01-01

Electro- and magneto-optical phenomena play key roles in photonic technology enabling light modulators, optical data storage, sensors and numerous spectroscopic techniques. Optical effects, linear and quadratic in external electric and magnetic field are widely known and comprehensively studied. However, optical phenomena that depend on the simultaneous application of external electric and magnetic fields in conventional media are barely detectable and technologically insignificant. Here we report that a large reciprocal magneto-electro-optical effect can be observed in metamaterials. In an artificial chevron nanowire structure fabricated on an elastic nano-membrane, the Lorentz force drives reversible transmission changes on application of a fraction of a volt when the structure is placed in a fraction-of-tesla magnetic field. We show that magneto-electro-optical modulation can be driven to hundreds of thousands of cycles per second promising applications in magneto-electro-optical modulators and field sensors at nano-tesla levels. PMID:25906761

Design of a photonic integrated based optical interrogator

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ibrahim, Selwan K.; Farnan, Martin; Karabacak, Devrez M.

2017-02-01

Optical sensors based on Fiber Bragg Gratings (FBGs) are used in several applications and industries. In order for fiber optic sensors to compete with electrical sensors, several critical parameters of both the sensors and sensor interrogators need to be in place such as performance, cost, size, reliability relevant to the target application. Here we have developed a tunable laser based optical interrogator which delivers high performance (up to 8kHz sweep-rate and 120dB dynamic range) and precision (<100fm) by optimizing the laser calibration of a telecom tunable laser and incorporating optical periodic wavelength references (e.g. MZI) to correct and compensate for wavelength non-linearity and noise during operation. Scaling up optical sensing systems to deliver high level of performance over a large number of sensors is enabled by synchronizing multiple interrogators. Further improvements can be achieved by using photonic integrated circuit (PIC) technology which reduces the footprint, cost, and improves performance. There exists several PIC technology platforms (e.g. InP, Si, TriPlex) that could be used to develop different optical building blocks used in the interrogator. Such building blocks include the tunable laser, couplers, photodiodes, MZIs, etc. are available on the InP platform. Here we have demonstrated the operation of an interrogator using PIC technology to replace many of the discrete optical components. The design and chip manufacturing was carried out as part of an InP multi-project wafer (MPW) run under the EU PARADIGM project. A custom package supporting fiber arrays was designed and manufactured to demonstrate the PIC functionality in an optical interrogator.

All fiber magnetic field sensor with Ferrofluid-filled tapered microstructured optical fiber interferometer.

PubMed

Deng, Ming; Huang, Can; Liu, Danhui; Jin, Wei; Zhu, Tao

2015-08-10

An ultra-compact optical fiber magnetic field sensor based on a microstructured optical fiber (MOF) modal interference and ferrofluid (FF) has been proposed and experimentally demonstrated. The magnetic field sensor was fabricated by splicing a tapered germanium-doped index guided MOF with six big holes injected with FF to two conventional single-mode fibers. The transmission spectra of the proposed sensor under different magnetic field intensities have been measured and theoretically analyzed. Due to an efficient interaction between the magnetic nanoparticles in FF and the excited cladding mode, the magnetic field sensitivity reaches up to117.9pm/mT with a linear range from 0mT to 30mT. Moreover, the fabrication process of the proposed sensor is simple, easy and cost-effective. Therefore, it will be a promising candidate for military, aviation industry, and biomedical applications, especially, for the applications where the space is limited.

Fiber optic sensors IV; Proceedings of the Third European Congress on Optics, The Hague, Netherlands, Mar. 13, 14, 1990

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kersten, Ralf T. (Editor)

1990-01-01

Recent advances in fiber-optic sensor (FOS) technology are examined in reviews and reports. Sections are devoted to components for FOSs, special fibers for FOSs, interferometry, FOS applications, and sensing principles and influence. Particular attention is given to solder glass sealing technology for FOS packaging, the design of optical-fiber current sensors, pressure and temperature effects on beat length in highly birefringent optical fibers, a pressure FOS based on vibrating-quartz-crystal technology, remote sensing of flammable gases using a fluoride-fiber evanescent probe, a displacement sensor with electronically scanned white-light interferometer, the use of multimode laser diodes in low-coherence coupled-cavity interferometry, electronic speckle interferometry compensated for environmentally induced phase noise, a dual-resolution noncontact vibration and displacement sensor based on a two-wavelength source, and fiber optics in composite materials.

Fiber Loop Ringdown — a Time-Domain Sensing Technique for Multi-Function Fiber Optic Sensor Platforms: Current Status and Design Perspectives

PubMed Central

Wang, Chuji

2009-01-01

Fiber loop ringdown (FLRD) utilizes an inexpensive telecommunications light source, a photodiode, and a section of single-mode fiber to form a uniform fiber optic sensor platform for sensing various quantities, such as pressure, temperature, strain, refractive index, chemical species, biological cells, and small volume of fluids. In FLRD, optical losses of a light pulse in a fiber loop induced by changes in a quantity are measured by the light decay time constants. FLRD measures time to detect a quantity; thus, FLRD is referred to as a time-domain sensing technique. FLRD sensors have near real-time response, multi-pass enhanced high-sensitivity, and relatively low cost (i.e., without using an optical spectral analyzer). During the last eight years since the introduction of the original form of fiber ringdown spectroscopy, there has been increasing interest in the FLRD technique in fiber optic sensor developments, and new application potential is being explored. This paper first discusses the challenging issues in development of multi-function, fiber optic sensors or sensor networks using current fiber optic sensor sensing schemes, and then gives a review on current fiber optic sensor development using FLRD technique. Finally, design perspectives on new generation, multi-function, fiber optic sensor platforms using FLRD technique are particularly presented. PMID:22408471

Fiber optic micromirror sensor for volatile organic compounds

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Butler, M.A.; Ricco, A.J.; Buss, R.

With the growing concern over environmental pollution, there is a need for sensors to locate and measure the distribution of a wide range of pollutants. In this paper the authors report a fiber optic sensor, based on a thin film micromirror, which responds to a wide range of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). This generic class of sensor will be useful for monitoring applications where the pollutant has already been identified.

Multi-Wavelength Based Optical Density Sensor for Autonomous Monitoring of Microalgae

PubMed Central

Jia, Fei; Kacira, Murat; Ogden, Kimberly L.

2015-01-01

A multi-wavelength based optical density sensor unit was designed, developed, and evaluated to monitor microalgae growth in real time. The system consisted of five main components including: (1) laser diode modules as light sources; (2) photodiodes as detectors; (3) driver circuit; (4) flow cell; and (5) sensor housing temperature controller. The sensor unit was designed to be integrated into any microalgae culture system for both real time and non-real time optical density measurements and algae growth monitoring applications. It was shown that the sensor unit was capable of monitoring the dynamics and physiological changes of the microalgae culture in real-time. Algae biomass concentration was accurately estimated with optical density measurements at 650, 685 and 780 nm wavelengths used by the sensor unit. The sensor unit was able to monitor cell concentration as high as 1.05 g·L−1 (1.51 × 108 cells·mL−1) during the culture growth without any sample preparation for the measurements. Since high cell concentrations do not need to be diluted using the sensor unit, the system has the potential to be used in industrial microalgae cultivation systems for real time monitoring and control applications that can lead to improved resource use efficiency. PMID:26364640

All-Optical Fibre Networks For Coal Mines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zientkiewicz, Jacek K.

1987-09-01

A topic of the paper is fiber-optic integrated network (FOIN) suited to the most hostile environments existing in coal mines. The use of optical fibres for transmission of mine instrumentation data offers the prospects of improved safety and immunity to electromagnetic interference (EMI). The feasibility of optically powered sensors has opened up new opportunities for research into optical signal processing architectures. This article discusses a new fibre-optic sensor network involving a time domain multiplexing(TDM)scheme and optical signal processing techniques. The pros and cons of different FOIN topologies with respect to coal mine applications are considered. The emphasis has been placed on a recently developed all-optical fibre network using spread spectrum code division multiple access (COMA) techniques. The all-optical networks have applications in explosive environments where electrical isolation is required.

Dynamic response of tapered optical multimode fiber coated with carbon nanotubes for ethanol sensing application.

PubMed

Shabaneh, Arafat; Girei, Saad; Arasu, Punitha; Mahdi, Mohd; Rashid, Suraya; Paiman, Suriati; Yaacob, Mohd

2015-05-04

Ethanol is a highly combustible chemical universally designed for biomedical applications. In this paper, optical sensing performance of tapered multimode fiber tip coated with carbon nanotube (CNT) thin film towards aqueous ethanol with different concentrations is investigated. The tapered optical multimode fiber tip is coated with CNT using drop-casting technique and is annealed at 70 °C to enhance the binding of the nanomaterial to the silica fiber tip. The optical fiber tip and the CNT sensing layer are micro-characterized using FESEM and Raman spectroscopy techniques. When the developed sensor was exposed to different concentrations of ethanol (5% to 80%), the sensor reflectance reduced proportionally. The developed sensors showed high sensitivity, repeatability and fast responses (<55 s) towards ethanol.

Dynamic Response of Tapered Optical Multimode Fiber Coated with Carbon Nanotubes for Ethanol Sensing Application

PubMed Central

Shabaneh, Arafat; Girei, Saad; Arasu, Punitha; Mahdi, Mohd; Rashid, Suraya; Paiman, Suriati; Yaacob, Mohd

2015-01-01

Ethanol is a highly combustible chemical universally designed for biomedical applications. In this paper, optical sensing performance of tapered multimode fiber tip coated with carbon nanotube (CNT) thin film towards aqueous ethanol with different concentrations is investigated. The tapered optical multimode fiber tip is coated with CNT using drop-casting technique and is annealed at 70 °C to enhance the binding of the nanomaterial to the silica fiber tip. The optical fiber tip and the CNT sensing layer are micro-characterized using FESEM and Raman spectroscopy techniques. When the developed sensor was exposed to different concentrations of ethanol (5% to 80%), the sensor reflectance reduced proportionally. The developed sensors showed high sensitivity, repeatability and fast responses (<55 s) towards ethanol. PMID:25946634

The role of optical sensors in environmental applications

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Coulter, S.L.; Klainer, S.M.; Saini, D.

1995-12-31

With the ever increasing regulations and public consciousness on pollution control there is an increasing demand for effective monitors for field use. The specifications for an effective field monitor are that it be an in situ sensor which presents real time data; that data are received without sampling or testing artifacts; and, that there is a low cost associated with running multiple tests. Fiber optic chemical sensors have been designed by FCI Environmental, Inc. which meet these specifications for the detection of hydrocarbons in air, water or soil. Recent developments at FCI Environmental in the field of optic chemical sensorsmore » include the development of a chip level waveguide sensor. With the improvements in the size and function of the sensor, which impacts the manufacturability and cost of the sensors, this new technology presents new opportunities in the fields of in situ monitoring. Current activities in the development of this technology and applications of specific solid-state immunoassay are discussed.« less

Moisture sensor based on evanescent wave light scattering by porous sol-gel silica coating

DOEpatents

Tao, Shiquan; Singh, Jagdish P.; Winstead, Christopher B.

2006-05-02

An optical fiber moisture sensor that can be used to sense moisture present in gas phase in a wide range of concentrations is provided, as well techniques for making the same. The present invention includes a method that utilizes the light scattering phenomenon which occurs in a porous sol-gel silica by coating an optical fiber core with such silica. Thus, a porous sol-gel silica polymer coated on an optical fiber core forms the transducer of an optical fiber moisture sensor according to an embodiment. The resulting optical fiber sensor of the present invention can be used in various applications, including to sense moisture content in indoor/outdoor air, soil, concrete, and low/high temperature gas streams.

Multiplexing electro-optic architectures for advanced aircraft integrated flight control systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Seal, D. W.

1989-01-01

This report describes the results of a 10 month program sponsored by NASA. The objective of this program was to evaluate various optical sensor modulation technologies and to design an optimal Electro-Optic Architecture (EOA) for servicing remote clusters of sensors and actuators in advanced aircraft flight control systems. The EOA's supply optical power to remote sensors and actuators, process the modulated optical signals returned from the sensors, and produce conditioned electrical signals acceptable for use by a digital flight control computer or Vehicle Management System (VMS) computer. This study was part of a multi-year initiative under the Fiber Optic Control System Integration (FOCSI) program to design, develop, and test a totally integrated fiber optic flight/propulsion control system for application to advanced aircraft. Unlike earlier FOCSI studies, this program concentrated on the design of the EOA interface rather than the optical transducer technology itself.

Lightweight Fiber Optic Gas Sensor for Monitoring Regenerative Food Production

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schmidlin, Edward; Goswami, Kisholoy

1995-01-01

In this final report, Physical Optics Corporation (POC) describes its development of sensors for oxygen, carbon dioxide, and relative humidity. POC has constructed a phase fluorometer that can detect oxygen over the full concentration range from 0 percent to 100 percent. Phase-based measurements offer distinct advantages, such as immunity to source fluctuation, photobleaching, and leaching. All optics, optoelectronics, power supply, and the printed circuit board are included in a single box; the only external connections to the fluorometer are the optical fiber sensor and a power cord. The indicator-based carbon dioxide sensor is also suitable for short-term and discrete measurements over the concentration range from 0 percent to 100 percent. The optical fiber-based humidity sensor contains a porous core for direct interaction of the light beam with water vapor within fiber pores; the detection range for the humidity sensor is 10 percent to 100 percent, and response time is under five minutes. POC is currently pursuing the commercialization of these oxygen and carbon dioxide sensors for environmental applications.

The 22nd International Conference on Optical Fibre Sensors, OFS-22

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liao, Yianbiao; Jin, Wei; Jones, Julian; Tatam, Ralph

2013-09-01

In October 2013, the 22nd International Conference on Optical Fibre Sensors was held in Beijing, attracting about 500 participants with 417 presentations. The conference began in 1983 in London, and in the subsequent 30 years has defined the subject. The conference is held approximately every 18 months, and rotates between three world regions: Asia/Pacific, Europe and the Americas. The conference is not 'owned' by any learned society or professional institution, but is organized by a self-sustaining international steering committee. This special feature represents the sixth occasion on which Measurement Science and Technology has published papers based on a development of a cross-section of work presented at the conference. The subject of optical fibre sensors has its beginnings in the enabling technologies of the optical fibre itself and the development of laser technologies suitable for practical use in demanding real-world applications. But the real driver for the subject in its early years was in the development of systems for defence applications, most notably for strategic-grade sea-bed hydrophone arrays for submarine detection, and the optical fibre gyroscope (the community has recently celebrated the 35th anniversary of its earliest publication) for aerospace navigation. Both applications continue to be important, but now with extensive civil applications: hydrophones for oil exploration and reservoir monitoring and management, and fibre gyroscopes for applications ranging from those requiring low cost and mass production (such as industrial robots and in agricultural machinery) to the most exotic and highest performance for space applications. The articles in this special feature exemplify the principal themes of the subject: enabling technologies, application-specific developments and systems considerations. In recent years, perhaps the most important—indeed, dominant—enabling technologies have been based on structuring of fibres: longitudinally, as in Bragg gratings, or transversely, using the science of metamaterials to produce microstructured fibres (e.g. photonic crystal fibres). In-fibre gratings continue to provide new types of sensor based on wavelength encoding, or for wavelength control for specialized sources or detection techniques. Microstructured fibres, meanwhile, provide materials with dispersion characteristics unattainable with conventional materials, as well as otherwise unfeasible physical characteristics that can be tailored to specific sensing applications. Examples of these types of technologies can be found in the following articles. The fields of application of optical fibre sensors, even if restricted to those presented at the conference, would be too lengthy to enumerate here. However, in this issue there are examples from medicine, transport, chemical sensing and electric power distribution, amongst others. An important advantage conferred by optical fibre sensors is the ability with which they can be multiplexed to form large arrays, interrogated via a single fibre, a topic that forms the subject of a number of papers in the issue. Lastly, as fibre sensors become the technology of choice in widespread applications, the issue of formal measurement standards begins to become important, and it is evidence of the maturity of the field that the subject is addressed in one of the papers published here: optical fibre sensors can now surely be said to have progressed from the physics laboratory to become a mainstream engineering reality.

Fiber optics for aircraft engine/inlet control

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baumbick, R. J.

1981-01-01

NASA programs that focus on the use of fiber optics for aircraft engine/inlet control are reviewed. Fiber optics for aircraft control is attractive because of its inherent immunity to EMI and RFI noise. Optical signals can be safely transmitted through areas that contain flammable or explosive materials. The use of optics also makes remote sensing feasible by eliminating the need for electrical wires to be connected between sensors and computers. Using low-level optical signals to control actuators is also feasible when power is generated at the actuator. Each application of fiber optics for aircraft control has different requirements for both the optical cables and the optical connectors. Sensors that measure position and speed by using slotted plates can use lossy cables and bundle connectors if data transfer is in the parallel mode. If position and speed signals are multiplexed, cable and connector requirements change. Other sensors that depend on changes in transmission through materials require dependable characteristics of both the optical cables and the optical connectors. A variety of sensor types are reviewed, including rotary position encoders, tachometers, temperature sensors, and blade tip clearance sensors for compressors and turbines. Research on a gallium arsenide photoswitch for optically switched actuators that operate at 250 C is also described.

Optical fiber evanescent absorption sensors for high-temperature gas sensing in advanced coal-fired power plants

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Buric, Michael P.; Ohodnicky, Paul R.; Duy, Janice

2012-10-01

Modern advanced energy systems such as coal-fired power plants, gasifiers, or similar infrastructure present some of the most challenging harsh environments for sensors. The power industry would benefit from new, ultra-high temperature devices capable of surviving in hot and corrosive environments for embedded sensing at the highest value locations. For these applications, we are currently exploring optical fiber evanescent wave absorption spectroscopy (EWAS) based sensors consisting of high temperature core materials integrated with novel high temperature gas sensitive cladding materials. Mathematical simulations can be used to assist in sensor development efforts, and we describe a simulation code that assumes a single thick cladding layer with gas sensitive optical constants. Recent work has demonstrated that Au nanoparticle-incorporated metal oxides show a potentially useful response for high temperature optical gas sensing applications through the sensitivity of the localized surface plasmon resonance absorption peak to ambient atmospheric conditions. Hence, the simulation code has been applied to understand how such a response can be exploited in an optical fiber based EWAS sensor configuration. We demonstrate that interrogation can be used to optimize the sensing response in such materials.

A novel optical gating method for laser gated imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ginat, Ran; Schneider, Ron; Zohar, Eyal; Nesher, Ofer

2013-06-01

For the past 15 years, Elbit Systems is developing time-resolved active laser-gated imaging (LGI) systems for various applications. Traditional LGI systems are based on high sensitive gated sensors, synchronized to pulsed laser sources. Elbit propriety multi-pulse per frame method, which is being implemented in LGI systems, improves significantly the imaging quality. A significant characteristic of the LGI is its ability to penetrate a disturbing media, such as rain, haze and some fog types. Current LGI systems are based on image intensifier (II) sensors, limiting the system in spectral response, image quality, reliability and cost. A novel propriety optical gating module was developed in Elbit, untying the dependency of LGI system on II. The optical gating module is not bounded to the radiance wavelength and positioned between the system optics and the sensor. This optical gating method supports the use of conventional solid state sensors. By selecting the appropriate solid state sensor, the new LGI systems can operate at any desired wavelength. In this paper we present the new gating method characteristics, performance and its advantages over the II gating method. The use of the gated imaging systems is described in a variety of applications, including results from latest field experiments.

Fiber optic sensor for measurement of pressure fluctuations at high temperatures

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zuckerwar, Allan J.; Cuomo, Frank W.

1989-01-01

A fiber-optic sensor, based on the principle of the fiber-optic lever, is described which features small size, extended bandwidth, and capability to operate at high temeratures, as required for measurements in hypersonic flow. The principle of operation, design features peculiar to the intended application, and expected performance at high temperatures are described.

Compact multispectral photodiode arrays using micropatterned dichroic filters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chandler, Eric V.; Fish, David E.

2014-05-01

The next generation of multispectral instruments requires significant improvements in both spectral band customization and portability to support the widespread deployment of application-specific optical sensors. The benefits of spectroscopy are well established for numerous applications including biomedical instrumentation, industrial sorting and sensing, chemical detection, and environmental monitoring. In this paper, spectroscopic (and by extension hyperspectral) and multispectral measurements are considered. The technology, tradeoffs, and application fits of each are evaluated. In the majority of applications, monitoring 4-8 targeted spectral bands of optimized wavelength and bandwidth provides the necessary spectral contrast and correlation. An innovative approach integrates precision spectral filters at the photodetector level to enable smaller sensors, simplify optical designs, and reduce device integration costs. This method supports user-defined spectral bands to create application-specific sensors in a small footprint with scalable cost efficiencies. A range of design configurations, filter options and combinations are presented together with typical applications ranging from basic multi-band detection to stringent multi-channel fluorescence measurement. An example implementation packages 8 narrowband silicon photodiodes into a 9x9mm ceramic LCC (leadless chip carrier) footprint. This package is designed for multispectral applications ranging from portable color monitors to purpose- built OEM industrial and scientific instruments. Use of an eight-channel multispectral photodiode array typically eliminates 10-20 components from a device bill-of-materials (BOM), streamlining the optical path and shrinking the footprint by 50% or more. A stepwise design approach for multispectral sensors is discussed - including spectral band definition, optical design tradeoffs and constraints, and device integration from prototype through scalable volume production. Additional customization options are explored for application-specific OEM sensors integrated into portable devices using multispectral photodiode arrays.

Recent Developments in Fiber Optics Humidity Sensors.

PubMed

Ascorbe, Joaquin; Corres, Jesus M; Arregui, Francisco J; Matias, Ignacio R

2017-04-19

A wide range of applications such as health, human comfort, agriculture, food processing and storage, and electronic manufacturing, among others, require fast and accurate measurement of humidity. Sensors based on optical fibers present several advantages over electronic sensors and great research efforts have been made in recent years in this field. The present paper reports the current trends of optical fiber humidity sensors. The evolution of optical structures developed towards humidity sensing, as well as the novel materials used for this purpose, will be analyzed. Well-known optical structures, such as long-period fiber gratings or fiber Bragg gratings, are still being studied towards an enhancement of their sensitivity. Sensors based on lossy mode resonances constitute a platform that combines high sensitivity with low complexity, both in terms of their fabrication process and the equipment required. Novel structures, such as resonators, are being studied in order to improve the resolution of humidity sensors. Moreover, recent research on polymer optical fibers suggests that the sensitivity of this kind of sensor has not yet reached its limit. Therefore, there is still room for improvement in terms of sensitivity and resolution.

Recent Developments in Fiber Optics Humidity Sensors

PubMed Central

Ascorbe, Joaquin; Corres, Jesus M.; Arregui, Francisco J.; Matias, Ignacio R.

2017-01-01

A wide range of applications such as health, human comfort, agriculture, food processing and storage, and electronic manufacturing, among others, require fast and accurate measurement of humidity. Sensors based on optical fibers present several advantages over electronic sensors and great research efforts have been made in recent years in this field. The present paper reports the current trends of optical fiber humidity sensors. The evolution of optical structures developed towards humidity sensing, as well as the novel materials used for this purpose, will be analyzed. Well-known optical structures, such as long-period fiber gratings or fiber Bragg gratings, are still being studied towards an enhancement of their sensitivity. Sensors based on lossy mode resonances constitute a platform that combines high sensitivity with low complexity, both in terms of their fabrication process and the equipment required. Novel structures, such as resonators, are being studied in order to improve the resolution of humidity sensors. Moreover, recent research on polymer optical fibers suggests that the sensitivity of this kind of sensor has not yet reached its limit. Therefore, there is still room for improvement in terms of sensitivity and resolution. PMID:28422074

Intrinsic polymer optical fiber sensors for high-strain applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kiesel, Sharon; Van Vickle, Patrick; Peters, Kara; Hassan, Tasnim; Kowalsky, Mervyn

2006-03-01

This paper presents intrinsic polymer fiber (POF) sensors for high-strain applications such as health monitoring of civil infrastructure systems subjected to earthquake loading or structures with large shape changes such as morphing aircraft. POFs provide a potential maximum strain range of 6-12%, are more flexible that silica optical fibers, and are more durable in harsh chemical or environmental conditions. Recent advances in the fabrication of singlemode POFs have made it possible to extend POFs to interferometric sensor capabilities. Furthermore, the interferometric nature of intrinsic sensors permits high accuracy for such measurements. However, several challenges, addressed in this paper, make the application of the POF interferometer more difficult than its silica counterpart. These include the finite deformation of the POF cross-section at high strain values, nonlinear strain optic effects in the polymer, and the attenuation with strain of the POF. In order to predict the response of the sensor a second-order (in strain) photoelastic effect is derived and combined with the second-order solution of the deformation of the optical fiber when loaded. It is determined that for the small deformation region four constants are required (two mechanical and two photoelastic properties) and for the large deformation region six additional constants are required (two mechanical and four photoelastic properties). This paper also presents initial measurements of the mechanical response of the sensor and comparison to previously reported POFs.

Customizable Optical Force Sensor for Fast Prototyping and Cost-Effective Applications.

PubMed

Díez, Jorge A; Catalán, José M; Blanco, Andrea; García-Perez, José V; Badesa, Francisco J; Gacía-Aracil, Nicolás

2018-02-07

This paper presents the development of an optical force sensor architecture directed to prototyping and cost-effective applications, where the actual force requirements are still not well defined or the most suitable commercial technologies would highly increase the cost of the device. The working principle of this sensor consists of determining the displacement of a lens by measuring the distortion of a refracted light beam. This lens is attached to an elastic interface whose elastic constant is known, allowing the estimation of the force that disturbs the optical system. In order to satisfy the requirements of the design process in an inexpensive way, this sensor can be built by fast prototyping technologies and using non-optical grade elements. To deal with the imperfections of this kind of manufacturing procedures and materials, four fitting models are proposed to calibrate the implemented sensor. In order to validate the system, two different sensor implementations with measurement ranges of ±45 N and ±10 N are tested with the proposed models, comparing the resulting force estimation with respect to an industrial-grade load cell. Results show that all models can estimate the loads with an error of about 6% of the measurement range.

Customizable Optical Force Sensor for Fast Prototyping and Cost-Effective Applications

PubMed Central

Díez, Jorge A.; Catalán, José M.; Blanco, Andrea; García-Perez, José V.; Badesa, Francisco J.

2018-01-01

This paper presents the development of an optical force sensor architecture directed to prototyping and cost-effective applications, where the actual force requirements are still not well defined or the most suitable commercial technologies would highly increase the cost of the device. The working principle of this sensor consists of determining the displacement of a lens by measuring the distortion of a refracted light beam. This lens is attached to an elastic interface whose elastic constant is known, allowing the estimation of the force that disturbs the optical system. In order to satisfy the requirements of the design process in an inexpensive way, this sensor can be built by fast prototyping technologies and using non-optical grade elements. To deal with the imperfections of this kind of manufacturing procedures and materials, four fitting models are proposed to calibrate the implemented sensor. In order to validate the system, two different sensor implementations with measurement ranges of ±45 N and ±10 N are tested with the proposed models, comparing the resulting force estimation with respect to an industrial-grade load cell. Results show that all models can estimate the loads with an error of about 6% of the measurement range. PMID:29414861

A Novel, High-Resolution, High-Speed Fiber-Optic Temperature Sensor for Oceanographic Applications

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-05-11

attached to the endface of a cleaved single-mode fiber using UV curable glue . A novel signal processing method has also been developed for the...thick Si wafer was bonded onto the tip of a single mode optical fiber using UV -curable glue . In addition to the sensor shown in Fig. 1(b), sensor...we developed a process to introduce much thicker silicon pieces onto the optical fiber tip. UV curable glue was first attached to the endface of

Integration and application of optical chemical sensors in microbioreactors.

PubMed

Gruber, Pia; Marques, Marco P C; Szita, Nicolas; Mayr, Torsten

2017-08-08

The quantification of key variables such as oxygen, pH, carbon dioxide, glucose, and temperature provides essential information for biological and biotechnological applications and their development. Microfluidic devices offer an opportunity to accelerate research and development in these areas due to their small scale, and the fine control over the microenvironment, provided that these key variables can be measured. Optical sensors are well-suited for this task. They offer non-invasive and non-destructive monitoring of the mentioned variables, and the establishment of time-course profiles without the need for sampling from the microfluidic devices. They can also be implemented in larger systems, facilitating cross-scale comparison of analytical data. This tutorial review presents an overview of the optical sensors and their technology, with a view to support current and potential new users in microfluidics and biotechnology in the implementation of such sensors. It introduces the benefits and challenges of sensor integration, including, their application for microbioreactors. Sensor formats, integration methods, device bonding options, and monitoring options are explained. Luminescent sensors for oxygen, pH, carbon dioxide, glucose and temperature are showcased. Areas where further development is needed are highlighted with the intent to guide future development efforts towards analytes for which reliable, stable, or easily integrated detection methods are not yet available.

Fiber optic medical pressure-sensing system employing intelligent self-calibration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

He, Gang

1996-01-01

In this article, we describe a fiber-optic catheter-type pressure-sensing system that has been successfully introduced for medical diagnostic applications. We present overall sensors and optoelectronics designs, and highlight product development efforts that lead to a reliable and accurate disposable pressure-sensing system. In particular, the incorporation of an intelligent on-site self-calibration approach allows limited sensor reuses for reducing end-user costs and for system adaptation to wide sensor variabilities associated with low-cost manufacturing processes. We demonstrate that fiber-optic sensors can be cost-effectively produced to satisfy needs of certain medical market segments.

Current Developments on Optical Feedback Interferometry as an All-Optical Sensor for Biomedical Applications

PubMed Central

Perchoux, Julien; Quotb, Adam; Atashkhooei, Reza; Azcona, Francisco J.; Ramírez-Miquet, Evelio E.; Bernal, Olivier; Jha, Ajit; Luna-Arriaga, Antonio; Yanez, Carlos; Caum, Jesus; Bosch, Thierry; Royo, Santiago

2016-01-01

Optical feedback interferometry (OFI) sensors are experiencing a consistent increase in their applications to biosensing due to their contactless nature, low cost and compactness, features that fit very well with current biophotonics research and market trends. The present paper is a review of the work in progress at UPC-CD6 and LAAS-CNRS related to the application of OFI to different aspects of biosensing, both in vivo and ex vivo. This work is intended to present the variety of opportunities and potential applications related to OFI that are available in the field. The activities presented are divided into two main sensing strategies: The measurement of optical path changes and the monitoring of flows, which correspond to sensing strategies linked to the reconstruction of changes of amplitude from the interferometric signal, and to classical Doppler frequency measurements, respectively. For optical path change measurements, measurements of transient pulses, usual in biosensing, together with the measurement of large displacements applied to designing palliative care instrumentation for Parkinson disease are discussed. Regarding the Doppler-based approach, progress in flow-related signal processing and applications in real-time monitoring of non-steady flows, human blood flow monitoring and OFI pressure myograph sensing will be presented. In all cases, experimental setups are discussed and results presented, showing the versatility of the technique. The described applications show the wide capabilities in biosensing of the OFI sensor, showing it as an enabler of low-cost, all-optical, high accuracy biomedical applications. PMID:27187406

Current Developments on Optical Feedback Interferometry as an All-Optical Sensor for Biomedical Applications.

PubMed

Perchoux, Julien; Quotb, Adam; Atashkhooei, Reza; Azcona, Francisco J; Ramírez-Miquet, Evelio E; Bernal, Olivier; Jha, Ajit; Luna-Arriaga, Antonio; Yanez, Carlos; Caum, Jesus; Bosch, Thierry; Royo, Santiago

2016-05-13

Optical feedback interferometry (OFI) sensors are experiencing a consistent increase in their applications to biosensing due to their contactless nature, low cost and compactness, features that fit very well with current biophotonics research and market trends. The present paper is a review of the work in progress at UPC-CD6 and LAAS-CNRS related to the application of OFI to different aspects of biosensing, both in vivo and ex vivo. This work is intended to present the variety of opportunities and potential applications related to OFI that are available in the field. The activities presented are divided into two main sensing strategies: The measurement of optical path changes and the monitoring of flows, which correspond to sensing strategies linked to the reconstruction of changes of amplitude from the interferometric signal, and to classical Doppler frequency measurements, respectively. For optical path change measurements, measurements of transient pulses, usual in biosensing, together with the measurement of large displacements applied to designing palliative care instrumentation for Parkinson disease are discussed. Regarding the Doppler-based approach, progress in flow-related signal processing and applications in real-time monitoring of non-steady flows, human blood flow monitoring and OFI pressure myograph sensing will be presented. In all cases, experimental setups are discussed and results presented, showing the versatility of the technique. The described applications show the wide capabilities in biosensing of the OFI sensor, showing it as an enabler of low-cost, all-optical, high accuracy biomedical applications.

Optical Riblet Sensor: Beam Parameter Requirements for the Probing Laser Source

PubMed Central

Tschentscher, Juliane; Hochheim, Sven; Brüning, Hauke; Brune, Kai; Voit, Kay-Michael; Imlau, Mirco

2016-01-01

Beam parameters of a probing laser source in an optical riblet sensor are studied by considering the high demands on a sensors’ precision and reliability for the determination of deviations of the geometrical shape of a riblet. Mandatory requirements, such as minimum intensity and light polarization, are obtained by means of detailed inspection of the optical response of the riblet using ray and wave optics; the impact of wavelength is studied. Novel measures for analyzing the riblet shape without the necessity of a measurement with a reference sample are derived; reference values for an ideal riblet structure obtained with the optical riblet sensor are given. The application of a low-cost, frequency-doubled Nd:YVO4 laser pointer sufficient to serve as a reliable laser source in an appropriate optical riblet sensor is discussed. PMID:27043567

Structural Health Monitoring of Civil Infrastructure Using Optical Fiber Sensing Technology: A Comprehensive Review

PubMed Central

Ye, X. W.; Su, Y. H.; Han, J. P.

2014-01-01

In the last two decades, a significant number of innovative sensing systems based on optical fiber sensors have been exploited in the engineering community due to their inherent distinctive advantages such as small size, light weight, immunity to electromagnetic interference (EMI) and corrosion, and embedding capability. A lot of optical fiber sensor-based monitoring systems have been developed for continuous measurement and real-time assessment of diversified engineering structures such as bridges, buildings, tunnels, pipelines, wind turbines, railway infrastructure, and geotechnical structures. The purpose of this review article is devoted to presenting a summary of the basic principles of various optical fiber sensors, innovation in sensing and computational methodologies, development of novel optical fiber sensors, and the practical application status of the optical fiber sensing technology in structural health monitoring (SHM) of civil infrastructure. PMID:25133250

Structural health monitoring of civil infrastructure using optical fiber sensing technology: a comprehensive review.

PubMed

Ye, X W; Su, Y H; Han, J P

2014-01-01

In the last two decades, a significant number of innovative sensing systems based on optical fiber sensors have been exploited in the engineering community due to their inherent distinctive advantages such as small size, light weight, immunity to electromagnetic interference (EMI) and corrosion, and embedding capability. A lot of optical fiber sensor-based monitoring systems have been developed for continuous measurement and real-time assessment of diversified engineering structures such as bridges, buildings, tunnels, pipelines, wind turbines, railway infrastructure, and geotechnical structures. The purpose of this review article is devoted to presenting a summary of the basic principles of various optical fiber sensors, innovation in sensing and computational methodologies, development of novel optical fiber sensors, and the practical application status of the optical fiber sensing technology in structural health monitoring (SHM) of civil infrastructure.

Effective application of optical sensing technology for sustainable liquid level sensing and rainfall measurement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Afzal, Muhammad Hassan Bin

2015-05-01

Rainfall measurement is performed on regular basis to facilitate effectively the weather stations and local inhabitants. Different types of rain gauges are available with different measuring principle for rainfall measurement. In this research work, a novel optical rain sensor is designed, which precisely calculate the rainfall level according to rainfall intensity. This proposed optical rain sensor model introduced in this paper, which is basically designed for remote sensing of rainfall and it designated as R-ORMS (Remote Optical Rainfall Measurement sensor). This sensor is combination of some improved method of tipping bucket rain gauge and most of the optical hydreon rain sensor's principle. This optical sensor can detect the starting time and ending time of rain, rain intensity and rainfall level. An infrared beam from Light Emitting Diode (LED) through powerful convex lens can accurately determines the diameter of each rain drops by total internal reflection principle. Calculations of these accumulative results determine the rain intensity and rainfall level. Accurate rainfall level is determined by internal optical LED based sensor which is embedded in bucket wall. This internal sensor is also following the total internal reflection (TIR) principle and the Fresnel's law. This is an entirely novel design of optical sensing principle based rain sensor and also suitable for remote sensing rainfall level. The performance of this proposed sensor has been comprehensively compared with other sensors with similar attributes and it showed better and sustainable result. Future related works have been proposed at the end of this paper, to provide improved and enhanced performance of proposed novel rain sensor.

Fabricate Optical Microfiber by Using Flame Brushing Technique and Coated with Polymer Polyaniline for Sensing Application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Razak, N. A.; Hamida, B. A.; Irawati, N.; Habaebi, M. H.

2017-06-01

Adiabaticity is one of the essential criteria in producing good fabricated tapered fibers. Good tapered fibers can be use in sensor application such as humidity sensor, temperature sensor and refractive index sensor. In this paper, good tapering silica fiber is produced by using flame brushing technique and then, the microfiber is coated with polymer Polyaniline (PAni) to sense different type of alcohols with different concentrations. The outcome of this experiment gives excellent repeatability in the detection of alcohol sensing with a sensitivity of 0.1332 μW/% and a resolution of 3.764%. In conclusion, conducting polymer coated optical microfiber sensor for alcohol detection with low cost, effective and simple set-up was successfully achieved in this study.

Selenium nanomaterials: applications in electronics, catalysis and sensors.

PubMed

Chaudhary, Savita; Mehta, S K

2014-02-01

This review provides insights into the synthesis, functionalization, and applications of selenium nanoparticles in electronics, optics, catalysis and sensors. The variation of physicochemical properties such as particle size, surface area, and shape of the selenium nanoparticles and the effect of experimental conditions has also been discussed. An overview has also been provided on the fundamental electrical and optical properties of selenium nanomaterials as well as their utilization in different research fields. The work presents an insight on selenium nanoparticles with interesting properties and their future applications.

Fibre optic strain sensor: examples of applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kruszewski, J.; Beblowska, M.; Wrzosek, P.

2006-03-01

Construction of strain sensor for application in safety systems has been presented. The device consists of sensor's head and source and detector units. The head is made of polymer fiber bends. Designed sensor could be mounted in monitoring place (e.g. under a floor) and controlled by PC unit or could be used as a portable device for a valuable object protection.

Evanescent Properties of Optical Diffraction from 2-Dimensional Hexagonal Photonic Crystals and Their Sensor Applications.

PubMed

Liao, Yu-Yang; Chen, Yung-Tsan; Chen, Chien-Chun; Huang, Jian-Jang

2018-04-03

The sensitivity of traditional diffraction grating sensors is limited by the spatial resolution of the measurement setup. Thus, a large space is required to improve sensor performance. Here, we demonstrate a compact hexagonal photonic crystal (PhC) optical sensor with high sensitivity. PhCs are able to diffract optical beams to various angles in azimuthal space. The critical wavelength that satisfies the phase matching or becomes evanescent was used to benchmark the refractive index of a target analyte applied on a PhC sensor. Using a glucose solution as an example, our sensor demonstrated very high sensitivity and a low limit of detection. This shows that the diffraction mechanism of hexagonal photonic crystals can be used for sensors when compact size is a concern.

Pressure Measurement Sensor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1997-01-01

FFPI Industries Inc. is the manufacturer of fiber-optic sensors that furnish accurate pressure measurements in internal combustion chambers. Such an assessment can help reduce pollution emitted by these engines. A chief component in the sensor owes its seven year- long development to Lewis Research Center funding to embed optical fibers and sensors in metal parts. NASA support to Texas A&M University played a critical role in developing this fiber optic technology and led to the formation of FFPI Industries and the production of fiber sensor products. The simple, rugged design of the sensor offers the potential for mass production at low cost. Widespread application of the new technology is forseen, from natural gas transmission, oil refining and electrical power generation to rail transport and the petrochemical paper product industry.

Low cost fiber optic sensing of sugar solution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Muthuraju, M. E.; Patlolla, Anurag Reddy; Vadakkapattu Canthadai, Badrinath; Pachava, Vengalrao

2015-03-01

The demand for highly sensitive and reliable sensors to assess the refractive index of liquid get many applications in chemical and biomedical areas. Indeed, the physical parameters such as concentration, pressure and density, etc., can be found using the refractive index of liquid. In contrast to the conventional refractometer for measurement, optical fiber sensor has several advantages like remote sensing, small in size, low cost, immune to EMI etc., In this paper we have discussed determination of refractive index of sugar solution using optical fiber. An intensity modulated low cost plastic fiber optic refractive index sensor has been designed for the study. The sensor is based on principle of change in angle of reflected light caused by refractive index change of the medium surrounding the fiber. The experimental results obtained for the sugar solution of different refractive indices prove that the fiber optic sensor is cable of measuring the refractive indices as well as the concentrations.

A micro-vibration generated method for testing the imaging quality on ground of space remote sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gu, Yingying; Wang, Li; Wu, Qingwen

2018-03-01

In this paper, a novel method is proposed, which can simulate satellite platform micro-vibration and test the impact of satellite micro-vibration on imaging quality of space optical remote sensor on ground. The method can generate micro-vibration of satellite platform in orbit from vibrational degrees of freedom, spectrum, magnitude, and coupling path. Experiment results show that the relative error of acceleration control is within 7%, in frequencies from 7Hz to 40Hz. Utilizing this method, the system level test about the micro-vibration impact on imaging quality of space optical remote sensor can be realized. This method will have an important applications in testing micro-vibration tolerance margin of optical remote sensor, verifying vibration isolation and suppression performance of optical remote sensor, exploring the principle of micro-vibration impact on imaging quality of optical remote sensor.

Spatially distributed fiber sensor with dual processed outputs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xu, X.; Spillman, William B., Jr.; Claus, Richard O.; Meissner, K. E.; Chen, K.

2005-05-01

Given the rapid aging of the world"s population, improvements in technology for automation of patient care and documentation are badly needed. We have previously demonstrated a 'smart bed' that can non-intrusively monitor a patient in bed and determine a patient's respiration, heart rate and movement without intrusive or restrictive medical measurements. This is an application of spatially distributed integrating fiber optic sensors. The basic concept is that any patient movement that also moves an optical fiber within a specified area will produce a change in the optical signal. Two modal modulation approaches were considered, a statistical mode (STM) sensor and a high order mode excitation (HOME) sensor. The present design includes an STM sensor combined with a HOME sensor, using both modal modulation approaches. A special lens system allows only the high order modes of the optical fiber to be excited and coupled into the sensor. For handling output from the dual STM-HOME sensor, computer processing methods are discussed that offer comprehensive perturbation analysis for more reliable patient monitoring.

Wideband optical sensing using pulse interferometry.

PubMed

Rosenthal, Amir; Razansky, Daniel; Ntziachristos, Vasilis

2012-08-13

Advances in fabrication of high-finesse optical resonators hold promise for the development of miniaturized, ultra-sensitive, wide-band optical sensors, based on resonance-shift detection. Many potential applications are foreseen for such sensors, among them highly sensitive detection in ultrasound and optoacoustic imaging. Traditionally, sensor interrogation is performed by tuning a narrow linewidth laser to the resonance wavelength. Despite the ubiquity of this method, its use has been mostly limited to lab conditions due to its vulnerability to environmental factors and the difficulty of multiplexing - a key factor in imaging applications. In this paper, we develop a new optical-resonator interrogation scheme based on wideband pulse interferometry, potentially capable of achieving high stability against environmental conditions without compromising sensitivity. Additionally, the method can enable multiplexing several sensors. The unique properties of the pulse-interferometry interrogation approach are studied theoretically and experimentally. Methods for noise reduction in the proposed scheme are presented and experimentally demonstrated, while the overall performance is validated for broadband optical detection of ultrasonic fields. The achieved sensitivity is equivalent to the theoretical limit of a 6 MHz narrow-line width laser, which is 40 times higher than what can be usually achieved by incoherent interferometry for the same optical resonator.

Design of a lithium niobate-on-insulator-based optical microring resonator for biosensing applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Naznin, Shakila; Sher, Md. Sohel Mahmud

2016-08-01

A label-free optical microring resonator biosensor based on lithium niobate-on-insulator (LNOI) technology is designed and simulated for biosensing applications. Although silicon-on-insulator technology is quite mature over LNOI for fabricating more compact microring resonators, the latter is attractive for its excellent electro-optic, ferroelectric, piezoelectric, photoelastic, and nonlinear optic properties, which can offer a wide range of tuning facilities for sensing. To satisfy the requirement of high sensitivity in biosensing, the dual-microring resonator model is applied to design the proposed sensor. The transmission spectrum obtained from two-dimensional simulations based on finite-difference time-domain method demonstrates that the designed LNOI microring sensor consisting of a 10-μm outer ring and a 5-μm inner ring offers a sensitivity of ˜68 nm/refractive index unit (RIU) and a minimum detection limit of 10-2 RIU. Finally, the sensor's performance is simulated for glucose sensing, a biosensing application.

VIBRATIONAL SPECTROSCOPIC SENSORS Fundamentals, Instrumentation and Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kraft, Martin

In textbook descriptions of chemical sensors, almost invariably a chemical sensor is described as a combination of a (dumb) transducer and a (smart) recognition layer. The reason for this is that most transducers, while (reasonably) sensitive, have limited analyte specificity. This is in particular true for non-optical, e.g. mass-sensitive or electrochemical systems, but also many optical transducers are as such incapable of distinguishing between different substances. Consequently, to build sensors operational in multicomponent environments, such transducers must be combined with physicochemical, chemical or biochemical recognition systems providing the required analyte specificity. Although advancements have been made in this field over the last years, selective layers are frequently not (yet) up to the demands set by industrial or environmental applications, in particular when operated over prolonged periods of time. Another significant obstacle are cross-sensitivities that may interfere with the analytical accuracy. Together, these limitations restrict the real-world applicability of many otherwise promising chemical sensors.

Biological and chemical sensors based on graphene materials.

PubMed

Liu, Yuxin; Dong, Xiaochen; Chen, Peng

2012-03-21

Owing to their extraordinary electrical, chemical, optical, mechanical and structural properties, graphene and its derivatives have stimulated exploding interests in their sensor applications ever since the first isolation of free-standing graphene sheets in year 2004. This article critically and comprehensively reviews the emerging graphene-based electrochemical sensors, electronic sensors, optical sensors, and nanopore sensors for biological or chemical detection. We emphasize on the underlying detection (or signal transduction) mechanisms, the unique roles and advantages of the used graphene materials. Properties and preparations of different graphene materials, their functionalizations are also comparatively discussed in view of sensor development. Finally, the perspective and current challenges of graphene sensors are outlined (312 references).

Wideband quad optical sensor for high-speed sub-nanometer interferometry.

PubMed

Riobo, L M; Veiras, F E; Sorichetti, P A; Garea, M T

2017-01-20

This paper describes the design and performance of a low-noise and high-speed optical sensor that provides two output signals in quadrature from the simultaneous detection of four phase-shifted interferograms. The sensor employs four high-speed photodiodes and high-speed, low-noise transimpedance amplifiers. The optical and electronic design was optimized for high-speed displacement measurement interferometry, over a broad range of operating frequencies. Compared to other experimental schemes, the sensor is simpler and of lower cost. The performance of the sensor is demonstrated by characterizing a piezoelectric transducer for ultrasonic applications. We measured displacements between 38 pm and 32 nm with 6% relative uncertainty, in the frequency range from 1 to 2 MHz.

Novel method of dual fiber Bragg gratings integrated in fiber ring laser for biochemical sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bui, H.; Pham, T. B.; Nguyen, V. A.; Pham, V. D.; Do, T. C.; Nguyen, T. V.; Hoang, T. H. C.; Le, H. T.; Pham, V. H.

2018-05-01

Optical sensors have been shown to be very effective for measuring the toxic content in liquid and air environments. Optical sensors, which operate based on the wavelength shift of the optical signals, require an expensive spectrometer. In this paper, we propose a new configuration of the optical sensor device for measuring wavelength shift without using a spectrometer. This configuration has a large potential for application in biochemical sensing techniques, and comes with a low cost. This configuration uses dual fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) integrated in a fiber ring laser structure of erbium-doped fiber, in which one FBG is used as a reference to sweep over the applicable spectrum of the etched-Bragg grating. The etched-FBG as a sensing probe is suitable for bio- and/or chemical sensors. The sensitivity and accuracy of the sensor system can be improved by the narrow linewidth of emission spectra from the laser, the best limit of detection of this sensor is 1.5  ×  10‑4 RIU (RIU: refractive index unit), as achieved by the optical sensor using a high resolution spectrometer. This sensor system has been experimentally investigated to detect different types of organic compounds, gasoline, mixing ratios of organic solvents in gasoline, and nitrate concentration in water samples. The experimental results show that this sensing method could determine different mixing ratios of organic solvents with good repeatability, high accuracy, and rapid response: e.g. for ethanol and/or methanol in gasoline RON 92 (RON: research octane number) of 0%–14% v/v, and nitrate in water samples at a low concentration range of 0–50 ppm. These results suggest that the proposed configuration can construct low-cost and accurate biochemical sensors.

Tuning the dynamic range and sensitivity of optical oxygen-sensors by employing differently substituted polystyrene-derivatives

PubMed Central

Koren, Klaus; Hutter, Lukas; Enko, Barbara; Pein, Andreas; Borisov, Sergey M.; Klimant, Ingo

2013-01-01

Ten different polystyrene-derivatives were tested with respect to their potential use as matrix materials for optical oxygen sensors in combination with the platinum(II) meso-tetra(4-fluorophenyl)tetrabenzoporphyrin as indicator dye. Either halogen atoms or bulky residues were introduced as substituents on the phenyl ring. A fine-tuning of the sensor sensitivity was achieved, without compromising solubility of the indicator in the matrix by providing a chemical environment very similar to polystyrene (PS), a standard matrix in optical oxygen sensors. To put the results into perspective, the studied materials were compared to PS regarding sensitivity of the sensor, molecular weight and glass-transition temperature. The materials promise to be viable alternatives to PS with respect to the requirements posed in various sensor application fields. Some of the polymers (e.g. poly(2,6-dichlorostyrene)) promise to be of use in applications requiring measurements from 0 to 100% oxygen due to linearity across this range. Poly(4-tert-butylstyrene) and poly(2,6-fluorostyrene), on the other hand, yield sensors with increased sensitivity. Sensor stability was evaluated as a function of the matrix, a topic which has not received a lot of interest so far. PMID:23576846

Miniature all-silica optical fiber pressure sensor with an ultrathin uniform diaphragm.

PubMed

Wang, Wenhui; Wu, Nan; Tian, Ye; Niezrecki, Christopher; Wang, Xingwei

2010-04-26

This paper presents an all-silica miniature optical fiber pressure/acoustic sensor based on the Fabry-Perot (FP) interferometric principle. The endface of the etched optical fiber tip and silica thin diaphragm on it form the FP structure. The uniform and thin silica diaphragm was fabricated by etching away the silicon substrate from a commercial silicon wafer that has a thermal oxide layer. The thin film was directly thermally bonded to the endface of the optical fiber thus creating the Fabry-Perot cavity. Thin films with a thickness from 1microm to 3microm have been bonded successfully. The sensor shows good linearity and hysteresis during measurement. A sensor with 0.75 microm-thick diaphragm thinned by post silica etching was demonstrated to have a sensitivity of 11 nm/kPa. The new sensor has great potential to be used as a non-intrusive pressure sensor in a variety of sensing applications.

A temperature-compensated optical fiber force sensor for minimally invasive surgeries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mo, Z.; Xu, W.; Broderick, N.; Chen, H.

2015-12-01

Force sensing in minimally invasive surgery (MIS) is a chronic problem since it has an intensive magnetic resonance (MR) operation environment, which causes a high influence to traditional electronic force sensors. Optical sensor is a promising choice in this area because it is immune to MR influence. However, the changing temperature introduces a lot of noise signals to them, which is the main obstacle for optical sensing applications in MIS. This paper proposes a miniature temperature-compensated optical force sensor by using Fabry-Perot interference (FPI) principle. It can be integrated into medical tools' tips and the temperature noise is decreased by using a reference FPI temperature sensor. An injection needle with embedded temperature-compensated FPI force sensor has been fabricated and tested. And the comparison between temperature-force simulation results and the temperature-force experiment results has been carried out.

Fiber Optic Sensor for Acoustic Detection of Partial Discharges in Oil-Paper Insulated Electrical Systems

PubMed Central

Posada-Roman, Julio; Garcia-Souto, Jose A.; Rubio-Serrano, Jesus

2012-01-01

A fiber optic interferometric sensor with an intrinsic transducer along a length of the fiber is presented for ultrasound measurements of the acoustic emission from partial discharges inside oil-filled power apparatus. The sensor is designed for high sensitivity measurements in a harsh electromagnetic field environment, with wide temperature changes and immersion in oil. It allows enough sensitivity for the application, for which the acoustic pressure is in the range of units of Pa at a frequency of 150 kHz. In addition, the accessibility to the sensing region is guaranteed by immune fiber-optic cables and the optical phase sensor output. The sensor design is a compact and rugged coil of fiber. In addition to a complete calibration, the in-situ results show that two types of partial discharges are measured through their acoustic emissions with the sensor immersed in oil. PMID:22666058

Study of optical techniques for the Ames unitary wind tunnels. Part 3: Angle of attack

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lee, George

1992-01-01

A review of optical sensors that are capable of accurate angle of attack measurements in wind tunnels was conducted. These include sensors being used or being developed at NASA Ames and Langley Research Centers, Boeing Airplane Company, McDonald Aircraft Company, Arnold Engineering Development Center, National Aerospace Laboratory of the Netherlands, National Research Council of Canada, and the Royal Aircraft Establishment of England. Some commercial sensors that may be applicable to accurate angle measurements were also reviewed. It was found that the optical sensor systems were based on interferometers, polarized light detector, linear or area photodiode cameras, position sensing photodetectors, and laser scanners. Several of the optical sensors can meet the requirements of the Ames Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel. Two of these, the Boeing interferometer and the Complere lateral effect photodiode sensors are being developed for the Ames Unitary Plan Wind Tunnel.

Volatile Organic Compound Optical Fiber Sensors: A Review

PubMed Central

Elosua, Cesar; Matias, Ignacio R.; Bariain, Candido; Arregui, Francisco J.

2006-01-01

Volatile organic compound (VOC) detection is a topic of growing interest with applications in diverse fields, ranging from environmental uses to the food or chemical industries. Optical fiber VOC sensors offering new and interesting properties which overcame some of the inconveniences found on traditional gas sensors appeared over two decades ago. Thanks to its minimum invasive nature and the advantages that optical fiber offers such as light weight, passive nature, low attenuation and the possibility of multiplexing, among others, these sensors are a real alternative to electronic ones in electrically noisy environments where electronic sensors cannot operate correctly. In the present work, a classification of these devices has been made according to the sensing mechanism and taking also into account the sensing materials or the different methods of fabrication. In addition, some solutions already implemented for the detection of VOCs using optical fiber sensors will be described with detail.

Application of Optical Flow Sensors for Dead Reckoning, Heading Reference, Obstacle Detection, and Obstacle Avoidance

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-09-01

OPTICAL FLOW SENSORS FOR DEAD RECKONING, HEADING REFERENCE, OBSTACLE DETECTION, AND OBSTACLE AVOIDANCE by Tarek M. Nejah September 2015...SENSORS FOR DEAD RECKONING, HEADING REFERENCE, OBSTACLE DETECTION, AND OBSTACLE AVOIDANCE 5. FUNDING NUMBERS 6. AUTHOR(S) Nejah, Tarek M. 7...DISTRIBUTION CODE 13. ABSTRACT (maximum 200 words) A novel approach for dead reckoning, heading reference, obstacle detection, and obstacle

Towards a new generation of fibre optic chemical sensors based on spider silk threads

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hey Tow, Kenny; Chow, Desmond M.; Vollrath, Fritz; Dicaire, Isabelle; Gheysens, Tom; Thévenaz, Luc

2017-04-01

A spider uses up to seven different types of silk, all having specific functions, to build its web. For scientists, native silk - directly extracted from spiders - is a tough, biodegradable and biocompatible thread used mainly for tissue engineering and textile applications. Blessed with outstanding optical properties, this protein strand can also be used as an optical fibre and is, moreover, intrinsically sensitive to chemical compounds. In this communication, a pioneering proof-of-concept experiment using spider silk, in its pristine condition, as a new type of fibre-optic relative humidity sensor will be demonstrated and its potential for future applications discussed.

Applications for fiber optic sensing in the upstream oil and gas industry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baldwin, Chris S.

2015-05-01

Fiber optic sensing has been used in an increasing number of applications in the upstream oil and gas industry over the past 20 years. In some cases, fiber optic sensing is providing measurements where traditional measurement technologies could not. This paper will provide a general overview of these applications and describe how the use of fiber optic sensing is enabling these applications. Technologies such as Bragg gratings, distributed temperature and acoustic sensing, interferometric sensing, and Brillouin scattering will be discussed. Applications for optic sensing include a range of possibilities from a single pressure measurement point in the wellbore to multizone pressure and flow monitoring. Some applications make use of fully distributed measurements including thermal profiling of the well. Outside of the wellbore, fiber optic sensors are used in applications for flowline and pipeline monitoring and for riser integrity monitoring. Applications to be described in this paper include in-flow profiling, well integrity, production monitoring, and steam chamber growth. These applications will cover well types such as injectors, producers, hydraulic fracturing, and thermal recovery. Many of these applications use the measurements provided by fiber optic sensing to improve enhanced oil recovery operations. The growing use of fiber optic sensors is providing improved measurement capabilities leading to the generation of actionable data for enhanced production optimization. This not only increases the recovered amount of production fluids but can also enhance wellbore integrity and safety.

Optical Electronic Bragg Reflection Sensor System with Hydrodynamic Flow Applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lyons, D. R.

2003-01-01

This project, as described in the following report, involved design and fabrication of fiber optic sensors for the detection and measurement of dynamic fluid density variations. These devices are created using UV (ultraviolet) ablation and generally modified transverse holographic fiber grating techniques. The resulting phase gratings created on or immediately underneath the flat portion of D-shaped optical waveguides are characterized as evanescent field sensing devices. The primary applications include the sensor portion of a real-time localized or distributed measurement system for hydrodynamic flow, fluid density measurements, and phase change phenomena. Several design modifications were implemented in an attempt to accomplish the tasks specified in our original proposal. In addition, we have established key collaborative relationships with numerous people and institutions.

WGM-Resonator/Tapered-Waveguide White-Light Sensor Optics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Stekalov, Dmitry; Maleki, Lute; Matsko, Andrey; Savchenkov, Anatoliy; Iltchenko, Vladimir

2007-01-01

Theoretical and experimental investigations have demonstrated the feasibility of compact white-light sensor optics consisting of unitary combinations of (1) low-profile whispering-gallery-mode (WGM) resonators and (2) tapered rod optical waveguides. These sensors are highly wavelength-dispersive and are expected to be especially useful in biochemical applications for measuring absorption spectra of liquids. These sensor optics exploit the properties of a special class of non-diffracting light beams that are denoted Bessel beams because their amplitudes are proportional to Bessel functions of the radii from their central axes. High-order Bessel beams can have large values of angular momentum. In a sensor optic of this type, a low-profile WGM resonator that supports modes having large angular momenta is used to generate high-order Bessel beams. As used here, "low-profile" signifies that the WGM resonator is an integral part of the rod optical waveguide but has a radius slightly different from that of the adjacent part(s).

Initial Performance Evaluation of Optical Fibers and Sensors Under High-Energy Electron Beam Irradiation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Palmer, Matthew E.; Slusher, David; Fielder, Robert S.

2006-01-01

In this paper, recent work on the performance of optical fiber, fiber optic sensors, and fiber optic connectors under the influence of a high-energy electron beam is presented. Electron beam irradiation is relevant for the Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter (JIMO) mission due to the high electron radiation environment surrounding Jupiter. As an initial feasibility test, selected optical fiber components were exposed to dose levels relevant to the Jupiter environment. Three separate fiber types were used: one series consisted of pure silica core fiber, two other series consisted of different levels of Germania-doped fiber. Additionally, a series of fused silica Extrinsic Fabry-Perot Interferometer (EFPI)-based fiber optic sensors and two different types of fiber optic connectors were tested. Two types of fiber coatings were evaluated: acrylate and polyimide. All samples were exposed to three different dose levels: 2 MRad, 20 MRad, and 50 MRad. Optical loss measurements were made on the optical fiber spools as a function of wavelength between 750 and 1750nm at periodic intervals up to 75 hrs after exposure. Attenuation is minimal and wavelength-dependent. Fiber optic sensors were evaluated using a standard EFPI sensor readout and diagnostic system. Optical connectors and optical fiber coatings were visually inspected for degradation. Additionally, tensile testing and minimum bend radius testing was conducted on the fibers. Initial loss measurements indicate a low-level of induced optical attenuation in the fiber which recovers with time. The fiber optic sensors exhibited no observable degradation after exposure. The optical fiber connectors and coatings also showed no observable degradation. In addition to harsh environment survivability, fiber optic sensors offer a number of intrinsic advantages for space nuclear power applications including extremely low mass, immunity to electromagnetic interference, self diagnostics / prognostics, and smart sensor capability. Deploying fiber optic sensors on future space exploration missions would provide a substantial improvement in spacecraft instrumentation.

Research-grade CMOS image sensors for remote sensing applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saint-Pe, Olivier; Tulet, Michel; Davancens, Robert; Larnaudie, Franck; Magnan, Pierre; Martin-Gonthier, Philippe; Corbiere, Franck; Belliot, Pierre; Estribeau, Magali

2004-11-01

Imaging detectors are key elements for optical instruments and sensors on board space missions dedicated to Earth observation (high resolution imaging, atmosphere spectroscopy...), Solar System exploration (micro cameras, guidance for autonomous vehicle...) and Universe observation (space telescope focal planes, guiding sensors...). This market has been dominated by CCD technology for long. Since the mid-90s, CMOS Image Sensors (CIS) have been competing with CCDs for consumer domains (webcams, cell phones, digital cameras...). Featuring significant advantages over CCD sensors for space applications (lower power consumption, smaller system size, better radiations behaviour...), CMOS technology is also expanding in this field, justifying specific R&D and development programs funded by national and European space agencies (mainly CNES, DGA and ESA). All along the 90s and thanks to their increasingly improving performances, CIS have started to be successfully used for more and more demanding space applications, from vision and control functions requiring low-level performances to guidance applications requiring medium-level performances. Recent technology improvements have made possible the manufacturing of research-grade CIS that are able to compete with CCDs in the high-performances arena. After an introduction outlining the growing interest of optical instruments designers for CMOS image sensors, this paper will present the existing and foreseen ways to reach high-level electro-optics performances for CIS. The developments and performances of CIS prototypes built using an imaging CMOS process will be presented in the corresponding section.

Advanced electro-optical imaging techniques. [conference papers on sensor technology applicable to Large Space Telescope program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sobieski, S. (Editor); Wampler, E. J. (Editor)

1973-01-01

The papers presented at the symposium are given which deal with the present state of sensors, as may be applicable to the Large Space Telescope (LST) program. Several aspects of sensors are covered including a discussion of the properties of photocathodes and the operational imaging camera tubes.

Microstructured Optical Fiber-based Biosensors: Reversible and Nanoliter-Scale Measurement of Zinc Ions.

PubMed

Heng, Sabrina; McDevitt, Christopher A; Kostecki, Roman; Morey, Jacqueline R; Eijkelkamp, Bart A; Ebendorff-Heidepriem, Heike; Monro, Tanya M; Abell, Andrew D

2016-05-25

Sensing platforms that allow rapid and efficient detection of metal ions would have applications in disease diagnosis and study, as well as environmental sensing. Here, we report the first microstructured optical fiber-based biosensor for the reversible and nanoliter-scale measurement of metal ions. Specifically, a photoswitchable spiropyran Zn(2+) sensor is incorporated within the microenvironment of a liposome attached to microstructured optical fibers (exposed-core and suspended-core microstructured optical fibers). Both fiber-based platforms retains high selectivity of ion binding associated with a small molecule sensor, while also allowing nanoliter volume sampling and on/off switching. We have demonstrated that multiple measurements can be made on a single sample without the need to change the sensor. The ability of the new sensing platform to sense Zn(2+) in pleural lavage and nasopharynx of mice was compared to that of established ion sensing methodologies such as inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and a commercially available fluorophore (Fluozin-3), where the optical-fiber-based sensor provides a significant advantage in that it allows the use of nanoliter (nL) sampling when compared to ICP-MS (mL) and FluoZin-3 (μL). This work paves the way to a generic approach for developing surface-based ion sensors using a range of sensor molecules, which can be attached to a surface without the need for its chemical modification and presents an opportunity for the development of new and highly specific ion sensors for real time sensing applications.

A Ubiquitous Optical Microsystem Platform with Application to Optical Metrology and Chemical Sensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gerling, John David

This dissertation is concerned with the development of a novel, versatile optical sensor platform for optical metrology and chemical sensing. We demonstrate the feasibility of embedding optical components between bonded silicon wafers with receptor cavities and optical windows to create a self-contained sensor microsystem that can be used for in-situ measurement of hostile environments. Arrays of these sensors internal to a silicon wafer can enable optical sensing for in-situ, real-time mapping and process development for the semiconductor industry in the form of an instrumented substrate. Single-die versions of these optical sensor platforms can also enable point-of-care diagnostics, high throughput disease screening, bio-warfare agent detection, and environmental monitoring. Our first discussion will focus on a single-wavelength interferometry-based prototype sensor. Several applications are demonstrated using this single wavelength prototype: refractive index monitoring, SiO2 plasma etching, chemical mechanical polishing, photoresist cure and dissolution, copper etch end-point detection, and also nanopore wetting phenomena. Subsequent sections of this dissertation will describe efforts to improve the optical sensor platform to achieve multi-wavelength sensing function. We explore the use of an off-the-shelf commercial RGB sensor for colorimetric monitoring of copper and aluminum thin-film etchings. We then expand upon our prior work and concepts to realize a fully integrated, chip-sized microspectrometer with a photon engine based on a diffraction grating. The design, fabrication, and demonstration of a working prototype with dimensions < 1 mm thick using standard planar microfabrication techniques is described. Proof-of-concept demonstrations indicate the working principle of dispersion, although with a low spectral resolution of 120 nm. With working knowledge of the issues of the first prototype, we present an improved 5-channel microspectrometer with a spectral range 400-900 nm and demonstrate its ability for spectral identification with 3 different phosphor powder samples. Finally, we conclude with suggestions for future areas of research.

Low drift and high resolution miniature optical fiber combined pressure- and temperature sensor for cardio-vascular and urodynamic applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Poeggel, Sven; Tosi, Daniele; Duraibabu, Dineshbabu; Sannino, Simone; Lupoli, Laura; Ippolito, Juliet; Fusco, Fernando; Mirone, Vincenzo; Leen, Gabriel; Lewis, Elfed

2014-05-01

The all-glass optical fibre pressure and temperature sensor (OFPTS), present here is a combination of an extrinsic Fabry Perot Interferometer (EFPI) and an fiber Bragg gratings (FBG), which allows a simultaneously measurement of both pressure and temperature. Thermal effects experienced by the EFPI can be compensated by using the FBG. The sensor achieved a pressure measurement resolution of 0.1mmHg with a frame-rate of 100Hz and a low drift rate of < 1 mmHg/hour drift. The sensor has been evaluated using a cardiovascular simulator and additionally has been evaluated in-vivo in a urodynamics application under medical supervision.

Fiber Optic Raman Sensor to Monitor Concentration Ratio of Nitrogen and Oxygen in a Cryogenic Mixture

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Tiwari, Vidhu S.; Kalluru, Rajamohan R.; Yueh, Fang-Yu; Singh, Jagdish P.; SaintCyr, William

2007-01-01

A spontaneous Raman scattering optical fiber sensor is developed for a specific need of NASA/SSC for long-term detection and monitoring of the quality of liquid oxygen (LOX) in the delivery line during ground testing of rocket engines. The sensor performance was tested in the laboratory and with different excitation light sources. To evaluate the sensor performance with different excitation light sources for the LOX quality application, we have used the various mixtures of liquid oxygen and liquid nitrogen as samples. The study of the sensor performance shows that this sensor offers a great deal of flexibility and provides a cost effective solution for the application. However, an improved system response time is needed for the real-time, quantitative monitoring of the quality of cryogenic fluids in harsh environment.

Optical and Electronic NOx Sensors for Applications in Mechatronics

PubMed Central

Di Franco, Cinzia; Elia, Angela; Spagnolo, Vincenzo; Scamarcio, Gaetano; Lugarà, Pietro Mario; Ieva, Eliana; Cioffi, Nicola; Torsi, Luisa; Bruno, Giovanni; Losurdo, Maria; Garcia, Michael A.; Wolter, Scott D.; Brown, April; Ricco, Mario

2009-01-01

Current production and emerging NOx sensors based on optical and nanomaterials technologies are reviewed. In view of their potential applications in mechatronics, we compared the performance of: i) Quantum cascade lasers (QCL) based photoacoustic (PA) systems; ii) gold nanoparticles as catalytically active materials in field-effect transistor (FET) sensors, and iii) functionalized III-V semiconductor based devices. QCL-based PA sensors for NOx show a detection limit in the sub part-per-million range and are characterized by high selectivity and compact set-up. Electrochemically synthesized gold-nanoparticle FET sensors are able to monitor NOx in a concentration range from 50 to 200 parts per million and are suitable for miniaturization. Porphyrin-functionalized III-V semiconductor materials can be used for the fabrication of a reliable NOx sensor platform characterized by high conductivity, corrosion resistance, and strong surface state coupling. PMID:22412315

Erbium-doped fiber amplifier elements for structural analysis sensors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hanna-Hawver, P.; Kamdar, K. D.; Mehta, S.; Nagarajan, S.; Nasta, M. H.; Claus, R. O.

1992-01-01

The use of erbium-doped fiber amplifiers (EDFA's) in optical fiber sensor systems for structural analysis is described. EDFA's were developed for primary applications as periodic regenerator amplifiers in long-distance fiber-based communication systems. Their in-line amplification performance also makes them attractive for optical fiber sensor systems which require long effective lengths or the synthesis of special length-dependent signal processing functions. Sensor geometries incorporating EDFA's in recirculating and multiple loop sensors are discussed. Noise and polarization birefringence are also considered, and the experimental development of system components is discussed.

Embedded Bragg grating fiber optic sensor for composite flexbeams

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bullock, Daniel; Dunphy, James; Hufstetler, Gerard

1993-03-01

An embedded fiber-optic (F-O) sensor has been developed for translaminar monitoring of the structural integrity of composites, with a view to application in composite helicopter flexbeams for bearingless main rotor hubs. This through-thickness strain sensor is much more sensitive than conventional in-plane embedded F-O sensors to ply delamination, on the basis of a novel insertion technique and innovative Bragg grating sensor. Experimental trials have demonstrated the detection by this means of potential failures in advance of the edge-delamination or crack-propagation effect.

Measuring Thicknesses of Coatings on Metals

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cotty, Glenn M., Jr.

1986-01-01

Digital light sensor and eddy-current sensor measure thickness without contact. Surface of Coating reflects laser beam to optical sensor. Position of reflected spot on sensor used by microcomputer to calculate coating thickness. Eddy-current sensor maintains constant distance between optical sensor and metal substrate. When capabilities of available components fully exploited, instrument measures coatings from 0.001 to 6 in. (0.0025 to 15 cm) thick with accuracy of 1 part in 4,000. Instrument readily incorporated in automatic production and inspection systems. Used to inspect thermal-insulation layers, paint, and protective coatings. Also used to control application of coatings to preset thicknesses.

Optical fiber sensors for high temperature harsh environment applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xiao, Hai; Wei, Tao; Lan, Xinwei; Zhang, Yinan; Duan, Hongbiao; Han, Yukun; Tsai, Hai-Lung

2010-04-01

This paper summarizes our recent research progresses in developing optical fiber harsh environment sensors for various high temperature harsh environment sensing applications such as monitoring of the operating conditions in a coal-fired power plant and in-situ detection of key gas components in coal-derived syngas. The sensors described in this paper include a miniaturized inline fiber Fabry-Perot interferometer (FPI) fabricated by one-step fs laser micromachining, a long period fiber grating (LPFG) and a fiber inline core-cladding mode interferometer (CMMI) fabricated by controlled CO2 laser irradiations. Their operating principles, fabrication methods, and applications for measurement of various physical and chemical parameters in a high temperature and high pressure coexisting harsh environment are presented.

Fiber-optic security monitoring sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Englund, Marja; Ipatti, Ari; Karioja, Pentti

1997-09-01

In security monitoring, fiber-optic sensors are advantageous because strong and rugged optical fibers are thin, light, flexible and immune to electromagnetic interference. Optical fibers packaged into cables, such as, building and underground cables, can be used to detect even slightest disturbances, movements, vibrations, pressure changes and impacts along their entire length. When running an optical cable around a structure, and when using speckle pattern recognition technique for alarm monitoring, the distributed monitoring of the structure is possible. The sensing cable can be strung along fences, buried underground, embedded into concrete, mounted on walls, floors and ceilings, or wrapped around the specific components. In this paper, a fiber-optic security monitoring sensor based on speckle pattern monitoring is described. The description of the measuring method and the results of the experimental fiber installations are given. The applicability of embedded and surface mounted fibers to monitor the pressure and impact induced vibrations of fences and concrete structures as well as the loosening of critical parts in a power plant machinery were demonstrated in field and laboratory conditions. The experiences related to the applications and optical cable types are also discussed.

Fiber optic security monitoring sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Englund, Marja; Ipatti, Ari; Karioja, Pentti

1997-09-01

In security monitoring, fiber-optic sensors are advantageous because strong and rugged optical fibers are thin, light, flexible and immune to electromagnetic interference. Optical fibers packaged into cables, such as, building and underground cables, can be used to detect even slightest disturbances, movements, vibrations, pressure changes and impacts along their entire length. When running an optical cable around a structure, and when using speckle pattern recognition technique for alarm monitoring, the distributed monitoring of the structure is possible. The sensing cable can be strung along fences, buried underground, embedded into concrete, mounted on walls, floors and ceilings, or wrapped around the specific components. In this paper, a fiber-optic security monitoring sensor based on speckle pattern monitoring is described. The description of the measuring method and the results of the experimental fiber installations are given. The applicability of embedded and surface mounted fibers to monitor the pressure and impact induced vibrations of fences and concrete structures as well as the loosening of critical parts in a power plant machinery were demonstrated in field and laboratory conditions. The experiences related to the applications and optical cable types are also discussed.

Sensitivity optimization of ZnO clad-modified optical fiber humidity sensor by means of tuning the optical fiber waist diameter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Azad, Saeed; Sadeghi, Ebrahim; Parvizi, Roghaieh; Mazaheri, Azardokht; Yousefi, M.

2017-05-01

In this work, the multimode optical fiber size effects on the performances of the clad-modified fiber with ZnO nanorods relative humidity (RH) sensor were experimentally investigated. Simple and controlled chemical etching method through on line monitoring was used to prepare different fiber waist diameter with long length of 15 mm. More precisely, the competition behavior of sensor performances with varying fiber waist diameter was studied to find appropriate size of maximizing evanescent fields. The obtained results revealed that evanescent wave absorption coefficient (γ) enhanced more than 10 times compare to bare fiber at the proposed optimum fiber diameter of 28 μm. Also, high linearity and fast recovery time about 7 s was obtained at the proposed fiber waist diameter. Applicable features of the proposed sensor allow this device to be used for humidity sensing applications, especially to be applied in remote sensing technologies.

Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube-Based Near-Infrared Optical Glucose Sensors toward In Vivo Continuous Glucose Monitoring

PubMed Central

Yum, Kyungsuk; McNicholas, Thomas P.; Mu, Bin; Strano, Michael S.

2013-01-01

This article reviews research efforts on developing single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT)-based near-infrared (NIR) optical glucose sensors toward long-term in vivo continuous glucose monitoring (CGM). We first discuss the unique optical properties of SWNTs and compare SWNTs with traditional organic and nanoparticle fluorophores regarding in vivo glucose-sensing applications. We then present our development of SWNT-based glucose sensors that use glucose-binding proteins and boronic acids as a high-affinity molecular receptor for glucose and transduce binding events on the receptors to modulate SWNT fluorescence. Finally, we discuss opportunities and challenges in translating the emerging technology of SWNT-based NIR optical glucose sensors into in vivo CGM for practical clinical use. PMID:23439162

High spatial resolution fiber optical sensors for simultaneous temperature and chemical sensing for energy industries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yan, Aidong; Huang, Sheng; Li, Shuo; Zaghloul, Mohamed; Ohodnicki, Paul; Buric, Michael; Chen, Kevin P.

2017-05-01

This paper demonstrates optical fibers as high-temperature sensor platforms. Through engineering and onfiber integration of functional metal oxide sensory materials, we report the development of an integrated sensor solution to perform temperature and chemical measurements for high-temperature energy applications. Using the Rayleigh optical frequency domain reflectometry (OFDR) distributed sensing scheme, the temperature and hydrogen concentration were measured along the fiber. To overcome the weak Rayleighbackscattering intensity exhibited by conventional optical fibers, an ultrafast laser was used to enhance the Rayleigh scattering by a direct laser writing method. Using the Rayleigh-enhanced fiber as sensor platform, both temperature and hydrogen reaction were monitored at high temperature up to 750°C with 4-mm spatial resolution.

Energetic radiation influence on temperature dependency of Brillouin frequency in optical fibers

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Pheron, X.; Ouerdane, Y.; Delepine-Lesoille, S.

We present a post mortem study of the influence of energetic radiation on optical fiber Brillouin sensors, both Brillouin spectrum and its temperature dependency in two different fibers, a photosensitive optical fiber and a SMF28. The target application is nuclear wastes repository monitoring where optical fiber Brillouin sensors might be exposed to energetic radiation. UV exposure induced optical losses, Brillouin frequency shifts up to 28 MHz and even a variation of the temperature dependency. The photosensitive optical fiber resulted more sensitive than SMF28{sup TM}. (authors)

Theory of absorption integrated optical sensor of gaseous materials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Egorov, A. A.

2010-10-01

The eigen and noneigen (leaky) modes of a three-layer planar integrated optical waveguide are described. The dispersion relation of a three-layer planar waveguide and other dependences are derived, and the cutoff conditions are analyzed. The diagram of propagation constants of the guided and radiation modes of an irregular asymmetric three-layer waveguide and the dependence of the electric field amplitudes of radiation modes of substrate on vertical coordinate in a tantalum integrated optical waveguide are presented. The operating principles of an absorption integrated optical waveguide sensor are investigated. The dependences of sensitivity of an integrated optical waveguide sensor on the sensory cell length, the coupling efficiency of the laser radiation into the waveguide, the absorption cross-section of the studied material, and the level of additive statistical noise are investigated. Some of the prospective areas of application of integrated-optical waveguide sensors are outlined.

Fiber optics for propulsion control systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baumbick, R. J.

1985-01-01

In aircraft systems with digital controls, fiberoptics has advantages over wire systems because of its inherent immunity to electromagnetic noise (EMI) and electromagnetic pulses (EMP). It also offers a weight benefit when metallic conductors are replaced by optical fibers. To take full advantage of the benefits of optical waveguides, passive optical sensors are also being developed to eliminate the need for electrical power to the sensor. Fiberoptics may also be used for controlling actuators on engine and airframe. In this application, the optical fibers, connectors, etc. will be subjected to high temperature and vibrations. This paper discussed the use of fiberoptics in aircraft propulsion systems together with the optical sensors and optically controlled actuators being developed to take full advantage of the benefits which fiberoptics offers. The requirements for sensors and actuators in advanced propulsion systems are identified. The benefits of using fiberoptics in place of conventional wire systems are discussed as well as the environmental conditions under which the optical components must operate.

Civil infrastructure monitoring for IVHS using optical fiber sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

de Vries, Marten J.; Arya, Vivek; Grinder, C. R.; Murphy, Kent A.; Claus, Richard O.

1995-01-01

8Early deployment of Intelligent Vehicle Highway Systems would necessitate the internal instrumentation of infrastructure for emergency preparedness. Existing quantitative analysis and visual analysis techniques are time consuming, cost prohibitive, and are often unreliable. Fiber optic sensors are rapidly replacing conventional instrumentation because of their small size, light weight, immunity to electromagnetic interference, and extremely high information carrying capability. In this paper research on novel optical fiber sensing techniques for health monitoring of civil infrastructure such as highways and bridges is reported. Design, fabrication, and implementation of fiber optic sensor configurations used for measurements of strain are discussed. Results from field tests conducted to demonstrate the effectiveness of fiber sensors at determining quantitative strain vector components near crack locations in bridges are presented. Emerging applications of fiber sensors for vehicle flow, vehicle speed, and weigh-in-motion measurements are also discussed.

Polarization Dependence Suppression of Optical Fiber Grating Sensor in a π-Shifted Sagnac Loop Interferometer

PubMed Central

Son, Jaebum; Lee, Min-Kyoung; Jeong, Myung Yung; Kim, Chang-Seok

2010-01-01

In the sensing applications of optical fiber grating, it is necessary to reduce the transmission-type polarization dependence to isolate the sensing parameter. It is experimentally shown that the polarization-dependent spectrum of acousto-optic long-period fiber grating sensors can be suppressed in the transmission port of a π-shifted Sagnac loop interferometer. General expressions for the transmittance and reflectance are derived for transmission-type, reflection-type, and partially reflecting/transmitting-type polarization-dependent optical devices. The compensation of polarization dependence through the counter propagation in the Sagnac loop interferometer is quantitatively measured for a commercial in-line polarizer and an acousto-optic long-period fiber grating sensor. PMID:22399884

Applications of fiber optics sensors in weigh-in-motion (WIM) systems for monitoring truck weights on pavements and structures.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2003-04-01

The main objective of this project was to investigate emerging technologies and to establish criteria for evaluating fiber optic sensors used to measure actual dynamic loads on pavements and structures. The dynamic load of particular interest for thi...

Plasmonic Fiber Optic Refractometric Sensors: From Conventional Architectures to Recent Design Trends

PubMed Central

Klantsataya, Elizaveta; Jia, Peipei; Ebendorff-Heidepriem, Heike; Monro, Tanya M.; François, Alexandre

2016-01-01

Surface Plasmon Resonance (SPR) fiber sensor research has grown since the first demonstration over 20 year ago into a rich and diverse field with a wide range of optical fiber architectures, plasmonic coatings, and excitation and interrogation methods. Yet, the large diversity of SPR fiber sensor designs has made it difficult to understand the advantages of each approach. Here, we review SPR fiber sensor architectures, covering the latest developments from optical fiber geometries to plasmonic coatings. By developing a systematic approach to fiber-based SPR designs, we identify and discuss future research opportunities based on a performance comparison of the different approaches for sensing applications. PMID:28025532

Optical Sensor based Chemical Modification as a Porous Cellulose Acetate Film and Its Application for Ethanol Sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mulijani, S.; Iswantini, D.; Wicaksono, R.; Notriawan, D.

2018-03-01

A new approach to design and construction of an optical ethanol sensor has been developed by immobilizing a direct dye at a porous cellulosic polymer fllm. This sensor was fabricated by binding Nile Red to a cellulose acetate membrane that had previously been subjected to an exhaustive base hydrolysis. The prepared optical ethanol sensor was enhanced by adding pluronic as a porogen in the membrane. The addition of pluronic surfactant into cellulose acetate membrane increased the hydrophilic and porous properties of membrane. Advantageous features of the design include simple and easy of fabrication. Variable affecting sensor performance of dye concentration have been fully evaluated and optimized. The rapid response results from the porous structure of the polymeric support, which minimizes barriers to mass transport. Signal of optical sensor based on reaction of dye nile red over the membrane with ethanol and will produce the purple colored product. Result was obtained that maximum intensity of dye nile red reacted with alcohol is at 630-640 nm. Linear regression equation (r2), limit of detection, and limit of quantitation of membrane with 2% dye was 0.9625, 0.29%, and 0.97%. Performance of optical sensor was also evaluated through methanol, ethanol and propanol. This study was purposed to measure the polarity and selectivity of optic sensor toward the alcohol derivatives. Fluorescence intensity of optic sensor membrane for methanol 5%, ethanol 5% and propanol 5% was 15113.56, 16573.75 and 18495.97 respectively.

Microfabricated optically pumped magnetometer arrays for biomedical imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perry, A. R.; Sheng, D.; Krzyzewski, S. P.; Geller, S.; Knappe, S.

2017-02-01

Optically-pumped magnetometers have demonstrated magnetic field measurements as precise as the best superconducting quantum interference device magnetometers. Our group develops miniature alkali atom-based magnetic sensors using microfabrication technology. Our sensors do not require cryogenic cooling, and can be positioned very close to the sample, making these sensors an attractive option for development in the medical community. We will present our latest chip-scale optically-pumped gradiometer developed for array applications to image magnetic fields from the brain noninvasively. These developments should lead to improved spatial resolution, and potentially sensitive measurements in unshielded environments.

A comprehensive review of lossy mode resonance-based fiber optic sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Qi; Zhao, Wan-Ming

2018-01-01

This review paper presents the achievements and present developments in lossy mode resonances-based optical fiber sensors in different sensing field, such as physical, chemical and biological, and briefly look forward to its future development trend in the eyes of the author. Lossy mode resonances (LMR) is a relatively new physical optics phenomenon put forward in recent years. Fiber sensors utilizing LMR offered a new way to improve the sensing capability. LMR fiber sensors have diverse structures such as D-shaped, cladding-off, fiber tip, U-shaped and tapered fiber structures. Major applications of LMR sensors include refraction sensors and biosensors. LMR-based fiber sensors have attracted considerable research and development interest, because of their distinct advantages such as high sensitivity and label-free measurement. This kind of sensor is also of academic interest and many novel and great ideas are continuously developed.

Fiber temperature sensor with nanostructured cladding by TiO2 nanoparticles self-assembled onto a side polished optical fiber

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Bing; Chen, Zhe; Wang, Yiting; Zhang, Jun; Liao, Guozhen; Tian, Zhengwen; Yu, Jianhui; Tang, Jieyuan; Luo, Yunhan; Lu, Huihui

2015-07-01

A temperature fiber sensor with nanostructured cladding composed ted by titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles was demonstrated. The nanoparticles self-assembled onto a side polished optical fiber (SPF). The enhancement of interaction between the propagating light and the TiO2 nanoparticles (TN) can be obtained via strong evanescent field of the SPF. The strong light-TN interaction gives rise to temperature sensing with a optical power variation of ~4dB in SPF experimentally for an environment temperature ranging from -7.8°C to 77.6°C. The novel temperature sensor shows a sensitivity of ~0.044 dB/°C. The TN-based fiber-optic temperature sensor is facile to manufactured, compatible with fiber-optic interconnections and high potential in photonics applications.

Innovative multi-cantilever array sensor system with MOEMS read-out

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ivaldi, F.; Bieniek, T.; Janus, P.; Grabiec, P.; Majstrzyk, W.; Kopiec, D.; Gotszalk, T.

2016-11-01

Cantilever based sensor system are a well-established sensor family exploited in several every-day life applications as well as in high-end research areas. The very high sensitivity of such systems and the possibility to design and functionalize the cantilevers to create purpose built and highly selective sensors have increased the interest of the scientific community and the industry in further exploiting this promising sensors type. Optical deflection detection systems for cantilever sensors provide a reliable, flexible method for reading information from cantilevers with the highest sensitivity. However the need of using multi-cantilever arrays in several fields of application such as medicine, biology or safety related areas, make the optical method less suitable due to its structural complexity. Working in the frame of a the Joint Undertaking project Lab4MEMS II our group proposes a novel and innovative approach to solve this issue, by integrating a Micro-Opto-Electro-Mechanical-System (MOEMS) with dedicated optics, electronics and software with a MOEMS micro-mirror, ultimately developed in the frame of Lab4MEMSII. In this way we are able to present a closely packed, lightweight solution combining the advantages of standard optical read-out systems with the possibility of recording multiple read-outs from large cantilever arrays quasi simultaneously.

Ionic Liquid-Based Optical and Electrochemical Carbon Dioxide Sensors.

PubMed

Behera, Kamalakanta; Pandey, Shubha; Kadyan, Anu; Pandey, Siddharth

2015-12-04

Due to their unusual physicochemical properties (e.g., high thermal stability, low volatility, high intrinsic conductivity, wide electrochemical windows and good solvating ability), ionic liquids have shown immense application potential in many research areas. Applications of ionic liquid in developing various sensors, especially for the sensing of biomolecules, such as nucleic acids, proteins and enzymes, gas sensing and sensing of various important ions, among other chemosensing platforms, are currently being explored by researchers worldwide. The use of ionic liquids for the detection of carbon dioxide (CO₂) gas is currently a major topic of research due to the associated importance of this gas with daily human life. This review focuses on the application of ionic liquids in optical and electrochemical CO₂ sensors. The design, mechanism, sensitivity and detection limit of each type of sensor are highlighted in this review.

Ionic Liquid-Based Optical and Electrochemical Carbon Dioxide Sensors

PubMed Central

Behera, Kamalakanta; Pandey, Shubha; Kadyan, Anu; Pandey, Siddharth

2015-01-01

Due to their unusual physicochemical properties (e.g., high thermal stability, low volatility, high intrinsic conductivity, wide electrochemical windows and good solvating ability), ionic liquids have shown immense application potential in many research areas. Applications of ionic liquid in developing various sensors, especially for the sensing of biomolecules, such as nucleic acids, proteins and enzymes, gas sensing and sensing of various important ions, among other chemosensing platforms, are currently being explored by researchers worldwide. The use of ionic liquids for the detection of carbon dioxide (CO2) gas is currently a major topic of research due to the associated importance of this gas with daily human life. This review focuses on the application of ionic liquids in optical and electrochemical CO2 sensors. The design, mechanism, sensitivity and detection limit of each type of sensor are highlighted in this review. PMID:26690155

Harsh-environment fiber optic sensors for structural monitoring applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fielder, Robert S.; Stinson-Bagby, Kelly L.; Palmer, Matthew E.

2004-07-01

The objective of the work presented was to develop a suite of sensors for use in high-temperature aerospace environments, including turbine engine monitoring, hypersonic vehicle skin friction measurements, and support ground and flight test operations. A fiber optic sensor platform was used to construct the sensor suite. Successful laboratory demonstrations include calibration of a pressure sensor to 100psi at a gas temperature of 800°C, calibration of an accelerometer to 2.5g at a substrate temperature of 850°C. Temperature sensors have been field tested up to 1400°C, and a skin friction sensor designed for 870°C operation has been constructed. The key advancement that enabled the operation of these novel harsh environment sensors was a fiber optic packaging methodology that allowed the coupling of alumina and sapphire transducer components, optical fiber, and high-temperature alloy housing materials. The basic operation of the sensors and early experimental results are presented. Each of the sensors described here represent a quantifiable advancement in the state of the art in high-temperature physical sensors and will have a significant impact on the aerospace propulsion instrumentation industry.

Ultra-precise micro-motion stage for optical scanning test

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Wen; Zhang, Jianhuan; Jiang, Nan

2009-05-01

This study aims at the application of optical sensing technology in a 2D flexible hinge test stage. Optical fiber sensor which is manufactured taking advantage of the various unique properties of optical fiber, such as good electric insulation properties, resistance of electromagnetic disturbance, sparkless property and availability in flammable and explosive environment, has lots of good properties, such as high accuracy and wide dynamic range, repeatable, etc. and is applied in 2D flexible hinge stage driven by PZT. Several micro-bending structures are designed utilizing the characteristics of the flexible hinge stage. And through experiments, the optimal micro-bending tooth structure and the scope of displacement sensor trip under this optimal micro-bending tooth structure are derived. These experiments demonstrate that the application of optical fiber displacement sensor in 2D flexible hinge stage driven by PZT substantially broadens the dynamic testing range and improves the sensitivity of this apparatus. Driving accuracy and positioning stability are enhanced as well. [1,2

Optical Displacement Sensor for Sub-Hertz Applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Abramovici, Alexander; Chiao, Meng P.; Dekens, Frank G.

2008-01-01

A document discusses a sensor made from off-the-shelf electro-optical photodiodes and electronics that achieves 20 nm/(Hz)(exp 1/2) displacement sensitivity at 1 mHz. This innovation was created using a fiber-coupled laser diode (or Nd:YAG) through a collimator and an aperture as the illumination source. Together with a germanium quad photodiode, the above-mentioned displacement sensor sensitivities have been achieved. This system was designed to aid the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) with microthruster tests and to be a backup sensor for monitoring the relative position between a proof mass and a spacecraft for drag-free navigation. The optical displacement sensor can be used to monitor any small displacement from a remote location with minimal invasion on the system.

Interferometry-based free space communication and information processing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arain, Muzammil Arshad

This dissertation studies, analyzes, and experimentally demonstrates the innovative use of interference phenomenon in the field of opto-electronic information processing and optical communications. A number of optical systems using interferometric techniques both in the optical and the electronic domains has been demonstrated in the filed of signal transmission and processing, optical metrology, defense, and physical sensors. Specifically it has been shown that the interference of waves in the form of holography can be exploited to realize a novel optical scanner called Code Multiplexed Optical Scanner (C-MOS). The C-MOS features large aperture, wide scan angles, 3-D beam control, no moving parts, and high beam scanning resolution. A C-MOS based free space optical transceiver for bi-directional communication has also been experimentally demonstrated. For high speed, large bandwidth, and high frequency operation, an optically implemented reconfigurable RF transversal filter design is presented that implements wide range of filtering algorithms. A number of techniques using heterodyne interferometry via acousto-optic device for optical path length measurements have been described. Finally, a whole new class of interferometric sensors for optical metrology and sensing applications is presented. A non-traditional interferometric output signal processing scheme has been developed. Applications include, for example, temperature sensors for harsh environments for a wide temperature range from room temperature to 1000°C.

High power VCSELs for miniature optical sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Geske, Jon; Wang, Chad; MacDougal, Michael; Stahl, Ron; Follman, David; Garrett, Henry; Meyrath, Todd; Snyder, Don; Golden, Eric; Wagener, Jeff; Foley, Jason

2010-02-01

Recent advances in Vertical-cavity Surface-emitting Laser (VCSEL) efficiency and packaging have opened up alternative applications for VCSELs that leverage their inherent advantages over light emitting diodes and edge-emitting lasers (EELs), such as low-divergence symmetric emission, wavelength stability, and inherent 2-D array fabrication. Improvements in reproducible highly efficient VCSELs have allowed VCSELs to be considered for high power and high brightness applications. In this talk, Aerius will discuss recent advances with Aerius' VCSELs and application of these VCSELs to miniature optical sensors such as rangefinders and illuminators.

Enhancing thermal reliability of fiber-optic sensors for bio-inspired applications at ultra-high temperatures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kang, Donghoon; Kim, Heon-Young; Kim, Dae-Hyun

2014-07-01

The rapid growth of bio-(inspired) sensors has led to an improvement in modern healthcare and human-robot systems in recent years. Higher levels of reliability and better flexibility, essential features of these sensors, are very much required in many application fields (e.g. applications at ultra-high temperatures). Fiber-optic sensors, and fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors in particular, are being widely studied as suitable sensors for improved structural health monitoring (SHM) due to their many merits. To enhance the thermal reliability of FBG sensors, thermal sensitivity, generally expressed as αf + ξf and considered a constant, should be investigated more precisely. For this purpose, the governing equation of FBG sensors is modified using differential derivatives between the wavelength shift and the temperature change in this study. Through a thermal test ranging from RT to 900 °C, the thermal sensitivity of FBG sensors is successfully examined and this guarantees thermal reliability of FBG sensors at ultra-high temperatures. In detail, αf + ξf has a non-linear dependence on temperature and varies from 6.0 × 10-6 °C-1 (20 °C) to 10.6 × 10-6 °C-1 (650 °C). Also, FBGs should be carefully used for applications at ultra-high temperatures due to signal disappearance near 900 °C.

Overview of detector technologies for EO/IR sensing applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sood, Ashok K.; Zeller, John W.; Welser, Roger E.; Puri, Yash R.; Lewis, Jay S.; Dhar, Nibir K.; Wijewarnasuriya, Priyalal

2016-05-01

Optical sensing technology is critical for optical communication, defense and security applications. Advances in optoelectronics materials in the UV, Visible and Infrared, using nanostructures, and use of novel materials such as CNT and Graphene have opened doors for new approaches to apply device design methodology that are expected to offer enhanced performance and low cost optical sensors in a wide range of applications. This paper is intended to review recent advancements and present different device architectures and analysis. The chapter will briefly introduce the basics of UV and Infrared detection physics and various wave bands of interest and their characteristics [1, 2] We will cover the UV band (200-400 nm) and address some of the recent advances in nanostructures growth and characterization using ZnO/MgZnO based technologies and their applications. Recent advancements in design and development of CNT and Graphene based detection technologies have shown promise for optical sensor applications. We will present theoretical and experimental results on these device and their potential applications in various bands of interest.

Numerical studies on a plasmonic temperature nanosensor based on a metal-insulator-metal ring resonator structure for optical integrated circuit applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Al-mahmod, Md. Jubayer; Hyder, Rakib; Islam, Md Zahurul

2017-07-01

A nanosensor, based on a metal-insulator-metal (MIM) plasmonic ring resonator, is proposed for potential on-chip temperature sensing and its performance is evaluated numerically. The sensor components can be fabricated by using planar processes on a silicon substrate, making its manufacturing compatible to planar electronic fabrication technology. The sensor, constructed using silver as the metal rings and a thermo-optic liquid ethanol film between the metal layers, is capable of sensing temperature with outstanding optical sensitivity, as high as -0.53 nm/°C. The resonance wavelength is found to be highly sensitive to the refractive index of the liquid dielectric film. The resonance peak can be tuned according to the requirement of intended application by changing the radii of the ring resonator geometries in the design phase. The compact size, planar and silicon-based design, and very high resolutions- these characteristics are expected to make this sensor technology a preferred choice for lab-on-a-chip applications, as compared to other contemporary sensors.

Fiberoptics for propulsion control system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baumbick, R. J.

1984-01-01

In aircraft systems with digital controls, fiberoptics has advantages over wire systems because of its inherent immunity to electromagnetic noise (EMI) and electromagnetic pulses (EMP). It also offers a weight benefit when metallic conductors are replaced by optical fibers. To take full advantage of the benefits of optical waveguides, passive optical sensors are also being developed to eliminate the need for electrical power to the sensor. Fiberoptics may also be used for controlling actuators on engine and airframe. In this application, the optical fibers, connectors, etc. will be subjected to high temperature and vibrations. This paper discussed the use of fiberoptics in aircraft propulsion systems together with the optical sensors and optically controlled actuators being developed to take full advantage of the benefits which fiberoptics offers. The requirements for sensors and actuators in advanced propulsion systems are identified. The benefits of using fiberoptics in place of conventional wire systems are discussed as well as the environmental conditions under which the optical components must operate.

Bragg gratings: Optical microchip sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Watts, Sam

2010-07-01

A direct UV writing technique that can create multiple Bragg gratings and waveguides in a planar silica-on-silicon chip is enabling sensing applications ranging from individual disposable sensors for biotechnology through to multiplexed sensor networks in pharmaceutical manufacturing.

2D metal profile detector using a polymeric fiber optic sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hua, Wei-Shu; Hooks, Joshua R.; Erwin, Nicholas A.; Wu, Wen-Jong; Wang, Wei-Chih

2012-04-01

As sensors become integrated in more applications, interest in magnetostrictive sensor technology has blossomed. Magnetostrictive materials have many advantages and useful applications in daily life, such as high efficient coupling between elastic and polymer material, large displacement, magnetic field sensors, micro actuator and motion motor, etc. The purpose of this paper is to develop a metal sensor which is capable of detecting different geometries and shapes of metal objects. The main configuration is using a Mach-Zehnder fiber-optic interferometer coated with magnetostrictive material. The metal detector system is a novel design of metal detector, easy to fabricate and capable of high sensitivity. In our design, metal detection is made possible by disrupting the magnetic flux density that encompasses the magnetostriction sensor. In this paper, experimental setups are described and metal sensing results are presented. The results of detecting complex metal's geometry and metal's mapping results are discussed.

Optical and Electronic NO(x) Sensors for Applications in Mechatronics.

PubMed

Di Franco, Cinzia; Elia, Angela; Spagnolo, Vincenzo; Scamarcio, Gaetano; Lugarà, Pietro Mario; Ieva, Eliana; Cioffi, Nicola; Torsi, Luisa; Bruno, Giovanni; Losurdo, Maria; Garcia, Michael A; Wolter, Scott D; Brown, April; Ricco, Mario

2009-01-01

Current production and emerging NO(x) sensors based on optical and nanomaterials technologies are reviewed. In view of their potential applications in mechatronics, we compared the performance of: i) Quantum cascade lasers (QCL) based photoacoustic (PA) systems; ii) gold nanoparticles as catalytically active materials in field-effect transistor (FET) sensors, and iii) functionalized III-V semiconductor based devices. QCL-based PA sensors for NO(x) show a detection limit in the sub part-per-million range and are characterized by high selectivity and compact set-up. Electrochemically synthesized gold-nanoparticle FET sensors are able to monitor NO(x) in a concentration range from 50 to 200 parts per million and are suitable for miniaturization. Porphyrin-functionalized III-V semiconductor materials can be used for the fabrication of a reliable NO(x) sensor platform characterized by high conductivity, corrosion resistance, and strong surface state coupling.

Measurement of sound pressure and temperature in tissue-mimicking material using an optical fiber Bragg grating sensor.

PubMed

Imade, Keisuke; Kageyama, Takashi; Koyama, Daisuke; Watanabe, Yoshiaki; Nakamura, Kentaro; Akiyama, Iwaki

2016-10-01

The experimental investigation of an optical fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensor for biomedical application is described. The FBG sensor can be used to measure sound pressure and temperature rise simultaneously in biological tissues exposed to ultrasound. The theoretical maximum values that can be measured with the FBG sensor are 73.0 MPa and 30 °C. In this study, measurement of sound pressure up to 5 MPa was performed at an ultrasound frequency of 2 MHz. A maximum temperature change of 6 °C was measured in a tissue-mimicking material. Values yielded by the FBG sensor agreed with those measured using a thermocouple and a hydrophone. Since this sensor is used to monitor the sound pressure and temperature simultaneously, it can also be used for industrial applications, such as ultrasonic cleaning of semiconductors under controlled temperatures.

Optically powered and interrogated rotary position sensor for aircraft engine control applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spillman, W. B.; Crowne, D. H.; Woodward, D. W.

A throttle level angle (TLA) sensing system is described that utilizes a capacitance based rotary position transducer that is powered and interrogated via light from a single multimode optical fiber. The system incorporates a unique GaAs device that serves as both a power converter and optical data transmitter. Design considerations are discussed, and the fabrication and performance of the sensor system are detailed.

Power modulation based fiber-optic loop-sensor having a dual measurement range

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nguyen, Nguyen Q.; Gupta, Nikhil

2009-08-01

A fiber-optic sensor is investigated in this work for potential applications in structural health monitoring. The sensor, called fiber-loop-sensor, is based on bending an optical fiber beyond a critical radius to obtain intensity losses and calibrating the losses with respect to the applied force or displacement. Additionally, in the present case, the use of single-mode optical fibers allows the appearance of several resonance peaks in the transmitted power-displacement graph. The intensity of one of these resonances can be tracked in a narrow range to obtain high sensitivity. Experimental results show that the resolution of 10-4 N for force and 10-5 m for displacement can be obtained in these sensors. The sensors are calibrated for various loop radii and for various loading rates. They are also tested under loading-unloading conditions for over 104 cycles to observe their fatigue behavior. The sensors show very repeatable response and no degradation in performance under these test conditions. Simple construction and instrumentation, high sensitivity, and low cost are the advantages of these sensors.

Micro-Optical Distributed Sensors for Aero Propulsion Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arnold, S.; Otugen, V.

2003-01-01

The objective of this research is to develop micro-opto-mechanical system (MOMS)-based sensors for time- and space-resolved measurements of flow properties in aerodynamics applications. The measurement technique we propose uses optical resonances in dielectric micro-spheres that can be excited by radiation tunneling from optical fibers. It exploits the tunneling-induced and morphology-dependent shifts in the resonant frequencies. The shift in the resonant frequency is dependent on the size, shape, and index of refraction of the micro-sphere. A physical change in the environment surrounding a micro-bead can change one or more of these properties of the sphere thereby causing a shift in frequency of resonance. The change of the resonance frequency can be detected with high resolution by scanning a frequency-tunable laser that is coupled into the fiber and observing the transmission spectrum at the output of the fiber. It is expected that, in the future, the measurement concept will lead to a system of distributed micro-sensors providing spatial data resolved in time and space. The present project focuses on the development and demonstration of temperature sensors using the morphology-dependent optical resonances although in the latter part of the work, we will also develop a pressure sensor. During the period covered in this report, the optical and electronic equipment necessary for the experimental work was assembled and the experimental setup was designed for the single sensor temperature measurements. Software was developed for real-time tracking of the optical resonance shifts. Some preliminary experiments were also carried out to detect temperature using a single bead in a water bath.

Micro-optical Distributed Sensors for Aero Propulsion Applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Arnold, S.; Otugen, V.; Seasholtz, Richard G. (Technical Monitor)

2003-01-01

The objective of this research is to develop micro-opto-mechanical system (MOMS)-based sensors for time- and space-resolved measurements of flow properties in aerodynamics applications. The measurement technique we propose uses optical resonances in dielectric micro-spheres that can be excited by radiation tunneling from optical fibers. It exploits the tunneling-induced and morphology-dependent shifts in the resonant frequencies. The shift in the resonant frequency is dependent on the size, shape, and index of refraction of the micro-sphere. A physical change in the environment surrounding a micro-bead can change one or more of these properties of the sphere thereby causing a shift in frequency of resonance. The change of the resonance frequency can be detected with high resolution by scanning a frequency-tunable laser that is coupled into the fiber and observing the transmission spectrum at the output of the fiber. It is expected that, in the future, the measurement concept will lead to a system of distributed micro-sensors providing spatial data resolved in time and space. The present project focuses on the development and demonstration of temperature sensors using the morphology-dependent optical resonances although in the latter part of the work, we will also develop a pressure sensor. During the period covered in this report, the optical and electronic equipment necessary for the experimental work was assembled and the experimental setup was designed for the single sensor temperature measurements. Software was developed for real-time tracking of the optical resonance shifts. Some preliminary experiments were also carried out to detect temperature using a single bead in a water bath.

Fiberoptics technology and its application to propulsion control systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Baumbick, R. J.

1983-01-01

Current work on optical sensors and optically controlled actuators for use in air-breathing engine control systems is reviewed with particular reference to the design and operation of several new fiber-optic devices. These include a tachometer, a rotary position encoder, a Fabry-Perot interferometer and a rare-earth sensor for measuring engine gas temperatures, a high-temperature photoswitch designed for the range -55 to 260 C, and optical cables and connectors. The advantages of optics over conventional wire systems used for sensing and actuator control are briefly discussed.

Low-cost fabrication of optical waveguides, interconnects and sensing structures on all-polymer-based thin foils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rezem, Maher; Kelb, Christian; Günther, Axel; Rahlves, Maik; Reithmeier, Eduard; Roth, Bernhard

2016-03-01

Micro-optical sensors based on optical waveguides are widely used to measure temperature, force and strain but also to detect biological and chemical substances such as explosives or toxins. While optical micro-sensors based on silicon technology require complex and expensive process technologies, a new generation of sensors based completely on polymers offer advantages especially in terms of low-cost and fast production techniques. We have developed a process to integrate micro-optical components such as embedded waveguides and optical interconnects into polymer foils with a thickness well below one millimeter. To enable high throughput production, we employ hot embossing technology, which is capable of reel-to-reel fabrication with a surface roughness in the optical range. For the waveguide fabrication, we used the thermoplastic polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) as cladding and several optical adhesives as core materials. The waveguides are characterized with respect to refractive indices and propagation losses. We achieved propagation losses are as low as 0.3 dB/cm. Furthermore, we demonstrate coupling structures and their fabrication especially suited to integrate various light sources such as vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSEL) and organic light emitting diodes (OLED) into thin polymer foils. Also, we present a concept of an all-polymer and waveguide based deformation sensor based on intensity modulation, which can be fabricated by utilizing our process. For future application, we aim at a low-cost and high-throughput reel-to-reel production process enabling the fabrication of large sensor arrays or disposable single-use sensing structures, which will open optical sensing to a large variety of application fields ranging from medical diagnosis to automotive sensing.

New properties of a fiber optic sensor in application of a composite fence for critical infrastructure protection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zyczkowski, M.; Szustakowski, M.; Markowski, P.

2015-09-01

This paper presents a new solution of using the composite fence with a novel fiber optic modalmetric sensor integrated within its structure. The modalmetric sensor is based on changes in a transverse modal field which is generated at the output of a multimode fiber. By a spatial limitation of the transverse modal field observation to its fragment thereof, changes' transformation in the modal distribution into changes of the output signal amplitude is made. Due to a constant analysis of the structure output signal, detection of an external disorder is possible. Integration of optical fibers with the fence structure allows for an accurate reproduction of the fence movement onto the optical fiber by significantly improving sensitivity of the modalmetric fiber sensor structure.

Optical fiber sensors: Accelerating applications in Navy ships

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Day, G. W.; Lovely, P. S.; Whitesel, H. K.; Hickernell, R. K.

1994-05-01

The Navy needs new sensors for shipboard machinery monitoring and control, condition-based maintenance, and damage assessment. Optical fiber sensors are strongly preferred because of their immunity to electrical disturbances, as well as potential size, weight, and performance advantages. But despite well over a decade of development and promise, relatively few optical fiber sensors available today can meet the Navy's needs with acceptable performance and cost. This report examines the reasons and recommends strategies to help the Navy achieve its goals. Some of the recommendations confirm approaches that the Navy is already implementing. Optical fiber sensors have very valuable potential advantages, but those that the Navy can use may remain too expensive to be deployed if the Navy uses traditional methods of writing specifications and soliciting development and procurement bids. For this reason, the study focuses on cooperation with industry and promoting commercial off-the-shelf and dual-use technology.

Dielectric micro-resonator-based opto-mechanical systems for sensing applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ali, Amir Roushdy

In recent years, whispering gallery mode (WGM), or morphology dependent optical resonances (MDR) of dielectric micro-resonators have attracted interest with proposed applications in a wide range of areas due to the high optical quality factors, Q, they can exhibit (reaching ~ 10. 9 for silica spheres). Micro-resonator WGMs have been used in applications that include those in spectroscopy, micro-cavity laser technology, optical communications (switching, filtering and multiplexing), sensors technologies and even chemical and biological sensing. The WGM of these dielectric micro-resonators are highly sensitive to morphological changes (such as the size, shape, or refractive index) of the resonance cavity and hence, can be tuned by causing a minute change in the physical condition of the surrounding. In this dissertation, we have been creating opto-mechanical systems, which at their most basic, are extraordinarily sensitive sensors. One of the ultimate goals of this dissertation is to develop sensors capable of detecting the extremely small electric field changes. To improve the performance of the sensors, we couple a polymer cantilever beam to a dielectric micro-resonator. The eventual use of such ultra sensitive electric filed sensors could include neural-machine interfaces for advanced prosthetics devices. The work presented here includes a basic analysis and experimental investigations of the electric field sensitivity and range of micro-resonators of several different materials and geometries followed by the electric field sensor design, testing, and characterization. Also, the effects of angular velocity on the WGM shifts of spherical micro-resonators are also investigated. The elastic deformation that is induced on a spinning resonator due to the centrifugal force may lead to a sufficient shift in the optical resonances and therefore interfering with its desirable operational sensor design. Furthermore, this principle could be used for the development of angular speed detection photonic sensors. In previous applications, the WGM shifts induced by the external effects were monitored by identifying and tracking individual resonance dip in the optical transmission spectrum. The success of the WGM sensors is strongly dependent on the precise and speeds tracking of the shifts of the resonant wavelengths. In this dissertation, we demonstrate the application of WGM micro-resonators for high-speed transient sensing (wide-bandwidth). To facilitate the use of the sensors for high-speed transient applications, we tune the interrogation laser using a harmonic rather than a ramp waveform and calibrate the laser response at various input frequencies and amplitudes using a Fabry-Perot interferometer. WGM shifts are tracked using a fast cross-correlation algorithm on the transmission spectra. We demonstrate dynamic force measurements up to 10 kHz using this approach. We also present a simple lumped-heat capacity thermal model to predict the laser's tuning response.

Characterization of Scintillating X-ray Optical Fiber Sensors

PubMed Central

Sporea, Dan; Mihai, Laura; Vâţă, Ion; McCarthy, Denis; O'Keeffe, Sinead; Lewis, Elfed

2014-01-01

The paper presents a set of tests carried out in order to evaluate the design characteristics and the operating performance of a set of six X-ray extrinsic optical fiber sensors. The extrinsic sensor we developed is intended to be used as a low energy X-ray detector for monitoring radiation levels in radiotherapy, industrial applications and for personnel dosimetry. The reproducibility of the manufacturing process and the characteristics of the sensors were assessed. The sensors dynamic range, linearity, sensitivity, and reproducibility are evaluated through radioluminescence measurements, X-ray fluorescence and X-ray imaging investigations. Their response to the operating conditions of the excitation source was estimated. The effect of the sensors design and implementation, on the collecting efficiency of the radioluminescence signal was measured. The study indicated that the sensors are efficient only in the first 5 mm of the tip, and that a reflective coating can improve their response. Additional tests were done to investigate the concentricity of the sensors tip against the core of the optical fiber guiding the optical signal. The influence of the active material concentration on the sensor response to X-ray was studied. The tests were carried out by measuring the radioluminescence signal with an optical fiber spectrometer and with a Multi-Pixel Photon Counter. PMID:24556676

A noncontact force sensor based on a fiber Bragg grating and its application for corrosion measurement.

PubMed

Pacheco, Clara J; Bruno, Antonio C

2013-08-29

A simple noncontact force sensor based on an optical fiber Bragg grating attached to a small magnet has been proposed and built. The sensor measures the force between the magnet and any ferromagnetic material placed within a few millimeters of the sensor. Maintaining the sensor at a constant standoff distance, material loss due to corrosion increases the distance between the magnet and the corroded surface, which decreases the magnetic force. This will decrease the strain in the optical fiber shifting the reflected Bragg wavelength. The measured shift for the optical fiber used was 1.36 nm per Newton. Models were developed to optimize the magnet geometry for a specific sensor standoff distance and for particular corrosion pit depths. The sensor was able to detect corrosion pits on a fuel storage tank bottom with depths in the sub-millimeter range.

A Noncontact Force Sensor Based on a Fiber Bragg Grating and Its Application for Corrosion Measurement

PubMed Central

Pacheco, Clara J.; Bruno, Antonio C.

2013-01-01

A simple noncontact force sensor based on an optical fiber Bragg grating attached to a small magnet has been proposed and built. The sensor measures the force between the magnet and any ferromagnetic material placed within a few millimeters of the sensor. Maintaining the sensor at a constant standoff distance, material loss due to corrosion increases the distance between the magnet and the corroded surface, which decreases the magnetic force. This will decrease the strain in the optical fiber shifting the reflected Bragg wavelength. The measured shift for the optical fiber used was 1.36 nm per Newton. Models were developed to optimize the magnet geometry for a specific sensor standoff distance and for particular corrosion pit depths. The sensor was able to detect corrosion pits on a fuel storage tank bottom with depths in the sub-millimeter range. PMID:23995095

Optical arc sensor using energy harvesting power source

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Choi, Kyoo Nam, E-mail: knchoi@inu.ac.kr; Rho, Hee Hyuk, E-mail: rdoubleh0902@inu.ac.kr

Wireless sensors without external power supply gained considerable attention due to convenience both in installation and operation. Optical arc detecting sensor equipping with self sustaining power supply using energy harvesting method was investigated. Continuous energy harvesting method was attempted using thermoelectric generator to supply standby power in micro ampere scale and operating power in mA scale. Peltier module with heat-sink was used for high efficiency electricity generator. Optical arc detecting sensor with hybrid filter showed insensitivity to fluorescent and incandescent lamps under simulated distribution panel condition. Signal processing using integrating function showed selective arc discharge detection capability to different arcmore » energy levels, with a resolution below 17 J energy difference, unaffected by bursting arc waveform. The sensor showed possibility for application to arc discharge detecting sensor in power distribution panel. Also experiment with proposed continuous energy harvesting method using thermoelectric power showed possibility as a self sustainable power source of remote sensor.« less

Optically defined modal sensors incorporating spiropyran-doped liquid crystals with piezoelectric sensors.

PubMed

Chen, Kuan-Ting; Chang, Chin-Kai; Kuo, Hui-Lung; Lee, Chih-Kung

2011-01-01

We integrated a piezoelectric sensing layer lamina containing liquid crystals (LC) and spiropyran (SP) in a LC/SP mixture to create an optically reconfigurable modal sensor for a cantilever beam. The impedance of this LC/SP lamina was decreased by UV irradiation which constituted the underlying mechanism to modulate the voltage externally applied to the piezoelectric actuating layer. Illuminating a specific pattern onto the LC/SP lamina provided us with a way to spatially modulate the piezoelectric vibration signal. We showed that if an UV illuminated pattern matches the strain distribution of a specific mode, a piezoelectric modal sensor can be created. Since UV illumination can be changed in situ in real-time, our results confirm for the first time since the inception of smart sensors, that an optically tailored modal sensor can be created. Some potential applications of this type of sensor include energy harvesting devices, bio-chips, vibration sensing and actuating devices.

Optical arc sensor using energy harvesting power source

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Choi, Kyoo Nam; Rho, Hee Hyuk

2016-06-01

Wireless sensors without external power supply gained considerable attention due to convenience both in installation and operation. Optical arc detecting sensor equipping with self sustaining power supply using energy harvesting method was investigated. Continuous energy harvesting method was attempted using thermoelectric generator to supply standby power in micro ampere scale and operating power in mA scale. Peltier module with heat-sink was used for high efficiency electricity generator. Optical arc detecting sensor with hybrid filter showed insensitivity to fluorescent and incandescent lamps under simulated distribution panel condition. Signal processing using integrating function showed selective arc discharge detection capability to different arc energy levels, with a resolution below 17J energy difference, unaffected by bursting arc waveform. The sensor showed possibility for application to arc discharge detecting sensor in power distribution panel. Also experiment with proposed continuous energy harvesting method using thermoelectric power showed possibility as a self sustainable power source of remote sensor.

Recent Development in Optical Fiber Biosensors

PubMed Central

Bosch, María Espinosa; Sánchez, Antonio Jesús Ruiz; Rojas, Fuensanta Sánchez; Ojeda, Catalina Bosch

2007-01-01

Remarkable developments can be seen in the field of optical fibre biosensors in the last decade. More sensors for specific analytes have been reported, novel sensing chemistries or transduction principles have been introduced, and applications in various analytical fields have been realised. This review consists of papers mainly reported in the last decade and presents about applications of optical fiber biosensors. Discussions on the trends in optical fiber biosensor applications in real samples are enumerated.

In-motion optical sensing for assessment of animal well-being

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Atkins, Colton A.; Pond, Kevin R.; Madsen, Christi K.

2017-05-01

The application of in-motion optical sensor measurements was investigated for inspecting livestock soundness as a means of animal well-being. An optical sensor-based platform was used to collect in-motion, weight-related information. Eight steers, weighing between 680 and 1134 kg, were evaluated twice. Six of the 8 steers were used for further evaluation and analysis. Hoof impacts caused plate flexion that was optically sensed. Observed kinetic differences between animals' strides at a walking or running/trotting gait with significant force distributions of animals' hoof impacts allowed for observation of real-time, biometric patterns. Overall, optical sensor-based measurements identified hoof differences between and within animals in motion that may allow for diagnosis of musculoskeletal unsoundness without visual evaluation.

Research-grade CMOS image sensors for demanding space applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saint-Pé, Olivier; Tulet, Michel; Davancens, Robert; Larnaudie, Franck; Magnan, Pierre; Corbière, Franck; Martin-Gonthier, Philippe; Belliot, Pierre

2004-06-01

Imaging detectors are key elements for optical instruments and sensors on board space missions dedicated to Earth observation (high resolution imaging, atmosphere spectroscopy...), Solar System exploration (micro cameras, guidance for autonomous vehicle...) and Universe observation (space telescope focal planes, guiding sensors...). This market has been dominated by CCD technology for long. Since the mid-90s, CMOS Image Sensors (CIS) have been competing with CCDs for more and more consumer domains (webcams, cell phones, digital cameras...). Featuring significant advantages over CCD sensors for space applications (lower power consumption, smaller system size, better radiations behaviour...), CMOS technology is also expanding in this field, justifying specific R&D and development programs funded by national and European space agencies (mainly CNES, DGA, and ESA). All along the 90s and thanks to their increasingly improving performances, CIS have started to be successfully used for more and more demanding applications, from vision and control functions requiring low-level performances to guidance applications requiring medium-level performances. Recent technology improvements have made possible the manufacturing of research-grade CIS that are able to compete with CCDs in the high-performances arena. After an introduction outlining the growing interest of optical instruments designers for CMOS image sensors, this talk will present the existing and foreseen ways to reach high-level electro-optics performances for CIS. The developments of CIS prototypes built using an imaging CMOS process and of devices based on improved designs will be presented.

Research-grade CMOS image sensors for demanding space applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Saint-Pé, Olivier; Tulet, Michel; Davancens, Robert; Larnaudie, Franck; Magnan, Pierre; Corbière, Franck; Martin-Gonthier, Philippe; Belliot, Pierre

2017-11-01

Imaging detectors are key elements for optical instruments and sensors on board space missions dedicated to Earth observation (high resolution imaging, atmosphere spectroscopy...), Solar System exploration (micro cameras, guidance for autonomous vehicle...) and Universe observation (space telescope focal planes, guiding sensors...). This market has been dominated by CCD technology for long. Since the mid- 90s, CMOS Image Sensors (CIS) have been competing with CCDs for more and more consumer domains (webcams, cell phones, digital cameras...). Featuring significant advantages over CCD sensors for space applications (lower power consumption, smaller system size, better radiations behaviour...), CMOS technology is also expanding in this field, justifying specific R&D and development programs funded by national and European space agencies (mainly CNES, DGA, and ESA). All along the 90s and thanks to their increasingly improving performances, CIS have started to be successfully used for more and more demanding applications, from vision and control functions requiring low-level performances to guidance applications requiring medium-level performances. Recent technology improvements have made possible the manufacturing of research-grade CIS that are able to compete with CCDs in the high-performances arena. After an introduction outlining the growing interest of optical instruments designers for CMOS image sensors, this talk will present the existing and foreseen ways to reach high-level electro-optics performances for CIS. The developments of CIS prototypes built using an imaging CMOS process and of devices based on improved designs will be presented.

Note: Compact and light displacement sensor for a precision measurement system in large motion

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lee, Sang Heon, E-mail: shlee@andong.ac.kr

We developed a compact and light displacement sensor applicable to systems that require wide range motions of its sensing device. The proposed sensor utilized the optical pickup unit of the optical disk drive, which has been used applied to atomic force microscopy (AFM) because of its compactness and lightness as well as its high performance. We modified the structure of optical pickup unit and made the compact sensor driver attachable to a probe head of AFM to make large rotation. The feasibilities of the developed sensor for a general probe-moving measurement device and for probe-rotating AFM were verified. Moreover, amore » simple and precise measurement of alignment between centers of rotator and probe tip in probe-rotation AFM was experimentally demonstrated using the developed sensor.« less

High speed demodulation systems for fiber optic grating sensors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Udd, Eric (Inventor); Weisshaar, Andreas (Inventor)

2002-01-01

Fiber optic grating sensor demodulation systems are described that offer high speed and multiplexing options for both single and multiple parameter fiber optic grating sensors. To attain very high speeds for single parameter fiber grating sensors ratio techniques are used that allow a series of sensors to be placed in a single fiber while retaining high speed capability. These methods can be extended to multiparameter fiber grating sensors. Optimization of speeds can be obtained by minimizing the number of spectral peaks that must be processed and it is shown that two or three spectral peak measurements may in specific multiparameter applications offer comparable or better performance than processing four spectral peaks. Combining the ratio methods with minimization of peak measurements allows very high speed measurement of such important environmental effects as transverse strain and pressure.

Optical fiber pressure and acceleration sensor fabricated on a fiber endface

DOEpatents

Zhu, Yizheng; Wang, Xingwei; Xu, Juncheng; Wang, Anbo

2006-05-30

A fiber optic sensor has a hollow tube bonded to the endface of an optical fiber, and a diaphragm bonded to the hollow tube. The fiber endface and diaphragm comprise an etalon cavity. The length of the etalon cavity changes when applied pressure or acceleration flexes the diaphragm. The entire structure can be made of fused silica. The fiber, tube, and diaphragm can be bonded with a fusion splice. The present sensor is particularly well suited for measuring pressure or acceleration in high temperature, high pressure and corrosive environments (e.g., oil well downholes and jet engines). The present sensors are also suitable for use in biological and medical applications.

Optical fiber sensor for breathing diagnostics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Claus, Richard O.; Distler, T.; Mecham, J. B.; Davis, B.; Arregui, F. J.; Matias, I. R.

2004-06-01

We report improvements of an optical fiber-based humidity sensor to the problem of breathing diagnostics. The sensor is fabricated by molecularly self-assembling selected polymers and functionalized inorganic nanoclusters into multilayered optical thin films on the cleaved and polished flat end of a singlemode optical fiber. Recent work has studied the synthesis process and the fundamental mechanisms responsible for the change in optical reflection from such a multicomponent film that occurs as a function of humidity and various chemicals. We briefly review that prior work as a way to introduce more recent developments. The paper then discusses the application of these humidity sensors to the analysis of air flow associated with breathing [1]. We have designed the sensor thin film materials to enable the detection of relative humidity over a wide range, from approximately 5 to 95%, and for response times as short as several microseconds. This fast response time allows the near real-time analysis of air flow and water vapor transport during a single breath, with the advantage of very small size. The use of multiple sensors spaced a known distance apart allows the measurement of flow velocity, and recent work indicates a variation in sensor response versus coating thickness.

Pressure sensitivity analysis of fiber Bragg grating sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mrad, Nezih; Sridharan, Vasant; Kazemi, Alex

2014-09-01

Recent development in fiber optic sensing technology has mainly focused on discrete sensing, particularly, sensing systems with potential multiplexing and multi-parameter capabilities. Bragg grating fiber optic sensors have emerged as the non-disputed champion for multiplexing and simultaneous multi-parameter sensing for emerging high value structural components, advanced processing and manufacturing capabilities and increased critical infrastructure resilience applications. Although the number of potential applications for this sensing technology is large and spans the domains of medicine, manufacturing, aerospace, and public safety; critical issues such as fatigue life, sensitivity, accuracy, embeddability, material/sensor interface integrity, and universal demodulation systems still need to be addressed. The purpose of this paper is to primarily evaluate Commercial-Of-The-Shelf (COTS) Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG) sensors' sensitivity to pressure, often neglected in several applications. The COTS fiber sensitivity to pressure is further evaluated for two types of coatings (Polyimide and Acrylate), and different arrangements (arrayed and single).

Application of active distribute temperature sensing and fiber optic as sensors to determinate the unsaturated hydraulic conductivity curve

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zubelzu, Sergio; Rodriguez-Sinobas, Leonor; Sobrino, Fernando

2017-04-01

The development of methodologies for the characterization of soil water content through the use of distribute temperature sensing and fiber optic cable has allowed for modelling with high temporal and spatial accuracy water movement in soils. One of the advantage of using fiber optic as a sensor, compared with the traditional point water probes, is the possibility to measure the variable continuously along the cable every 0.125 m (up to a cable length of 1500) and every second. Traditionally, applications based on fiber optic as a soil water sensor apply the active heated fiber optic technique AHFO to follow the evolution soil water content during and after irrigation events or for hydrologic characterization. However, this paper accomplishes an original experience by using AHFO as a sensor to characterize the soil hydraulic conductivity curve in subsaturated conditions. The non lineal nature between the hidraulic conductivity curve and soil water, showing high slope in the range close to saturation ) favors the AHFO a most suitable sensor due to its ability to measure the variable at small time and length intervals. Thus, it is possible to obtain accurate and a large number of data to be used to estimate the hydraulic conductivity curve from de water flow general equation by numerical methods. Results are promising and showed the feasibility of this technique to estimate the hydraulic conductivity curve for subsaturated soils .

Lightweight fiber optic microphones and accelerometers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bucaro, J. A.; Lagakos, N.

2001-06-01

We have designed, fabricated, and tested two lightweight fiber optic sensors for the dynamic measurement of acoustic pressure and acceleration. These sensors, one a microphone and the other an accelerometer, are required for active blanket sound control technology under development in our laboratory. The sensors were designed to perform to certain specifications dictated by our active sound control application and to do so without exhibiting sensitivity to the high electrical voltages expected to be present. Furthermore, the devices had to be small (volumes less than 1.5 cm3) and light (less than 2 g). To achieve these design criteria, we modified and extended fiber optic reflection microphone and fiber microbend displacement device designs reported in the literature. After fabrication, the performances of each sensor type were determined from measurements made in a dynamic pressure calibrator and on a shaker table. The fiber optic microbend accelerometer, which weighs less than 1.8 g, was found to meet all performance goals including 1% linearity, 90 dB dynamic range, and a minimum detectable acceleration of 0.2 mg/√Hz . The fiber optic microphone, which weighs less than 1.3 g, also met all goals including 1% linearity, 85 dB dynamic range, and a minimum detectable acoustic pressure level of 0.016 Pa/√Hz . In addition to our specific use in active sound control, these sensors appear to have application in a variety of other areas.

Experimental study of low-cost fiber optic distributed temperature sensor system performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dashkov, Michael V.; Zharkov, Alexander D.

2016-03-01

The distributed control of temperature is an actual task for various application such as oil & gas fields, high-voltage power lines, fire alarm systems etc. The most perspective are optical fiber distributed temperature sensors (DTS). They have advantages on accuracy, resolution and range, but have a high cost. Nevertheless, for some application the accuracy of measurement and localization aren't so important as cost. The results of an experimental study of low-cost Raman based DTS based on standard OTDR are represented.

The progress of sub-pixel imaging methods

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Hu; Wen, Desheng

2014-02-01

This paper reviews the Sub-pixel imaging technology principles, characteristics, the current development status at home and abroad and the latest research developments. As Sub-pixel imaging technology has achieved the advantages of high resolution of optical remote sensor, flexible working ways and being miniaturized with no moving parts. The imaging system is suitable for the application of space remote sensor. Its application prospect is very extensive. It is quite possible to be the research development direction of future space optical remote sensing technology.

Fiber-optically sensorized composite wing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Costa, Joannes M.; Black, Richard J.; Moslehi, Behzad; Oblea, Levy; Patel, Rona; Sotoudeh, Vahid; Abouzeida, Essam; Quinones, Vladimir; Gowayed, Yasser; Soobramaney, Paul; Flowers, George

2014-04-01

Electromagnetic interference (EMI) immune and light-weight, fiber-optic sensor based Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) will find increasing application in aerospace structures ranging from aircraft wings to jet engine vanes. Intelligent Fiber Optic Systems Corporation (IFOS) has been developing multi-functional fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensor systems including parallel processing FBG interrogators combined with advanced signal processing for SHM, structural state sensing and load monitoring applications. This paper reports work with Auburn University on embedding and testing FBG sensor arrays in a quarter scale model of a T38 composite wing. The wing was designed and manufactured using fabric reinforced polymer matrix composites. FBG sensors were embedded under the top layer of the composite. Their positions were chosen based on strain maps determined by finite element analysis. Static and dynamic testing confirmed expected response from the FBGs. The demonstrated technology has the potential to be further developed into an autonomous onboard system to perform load monitoring, SHM and Non-Destructive Evaluation (NDE) of composite aerospace structures (wings and rotorcraft blades). This platform technology could also be applied to flight testing of morphing and aero-elastic control surfaces.

Mobile micro-colorimeter and micro-spectrometer sensor modules as enablers for the replacement of subjective inspections by objective measurements for optically clear colored liquids in-field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dittrich, Paul-Gerald; Grunert, Fred; Ehehalt, Jörg; Hofmann, Dietrich

2015-03-01

Aim of the paper is to show that the colorimetric characterization of optically clear colored liquids can be performed with different measurement methods and their application specific multichannel spectral sensors. The possible measurement methods are differentiated by the applied types of multichannel spectral sensors and therefore by their spectral resolution, measurement speed, measurement accuracy and measurement costs. The paper describes how different types of multichannel spectral sensors are calibrated with different types of calibration methods and how the measurement values can be used for further colorimetric calculations. The different measurement methods and the different application specific calibration methods will be explained methodically and theoretically. The paper proofs that and how different multichannel spectral sensor modules with different calibration methods can be applied with smartpads for the calculation of measurement results both in laboratory and in field. A given practical example is the application of different multichannel spectral sensors for the colorimetric characterization of petroleum oils and fuels and their colorimetric characterization by the Saybolt color scale.

Fiber optic distributed temperature sensor mapping of a jet-mixing flow field

DOE PAGES

Lomperski, Stephen; Gerardi, Craig; Pointer, William David

2015-03-04

In this paper, we introduce the use of a Rayleigh backscatter-based distributed fiber optic sensor to map the temperature field in air flow for a thermal fatigue application. The experiment involves a pair of air jets at 22 and 70°C discharging from 136 mm hexagonal channels into a 1 × 1 × 1.7 m tank at atmospheric pressure. A 40 m-long, Φ155 µm fiber optic sensor was wound back and forth across the tank midplane to form 16 horizontal measurement sections with a vertical spacing of 51 mm. This configuration generated a 2D temperature map with 2800 data points overmore » a 0.76 × 1.7 m plane. Fiber optic sensor readings were combined with PIV and infrared measurements to relate flow field characteristics to the thermal signature of the tank lid. The paper includes sensor stability data and notes issues encountered using the distributed temperature sensor in a flow field. In conclusion, sensors are sensitive to strain and humidity, and so accuracy relies upon strict control of both.« less

Fiber optic distributed temperature sensor mapping of a jet-mixing flow field

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lomperski, Stephen; Gerardi, Craig; Pointer, William David

In this paper, we introduce the use of a Rayleigh backscatter-based distributed fiber optic sensor to map the temperature field in air flow for a thermal fatigue application. The experiment involves a pair of air jets at 22 and 70°C discharging from 136 mm hexagonal channels into a 1 × 1 × 1.7 m tank at atmospheric pressure. A 40 m-long, Φ155 µm fiber optic sensor was wound back and forth across the tank midplane to form 16 horizontal measurement sections with a vertical spacing of 51 mm. This configuration generated a 2D temperature map with 2800 data points overmore » a 0.76 × 1.7 m plane. Fiber optic sensor readings were combined with PIV and infrared measurements to relate flow field characteristics to the thermal signature of the tank lid. The paper includes sensor stability data and notes issues encountered using the distributed temperature sensor in a flow field. In conclusion, sensors are sensitive to strain and humidity, and so accuracy relies upon strict control of both.« less

Various on-chip sensors with microfluidics for biological applications.

PubMed

Lee, Hun; Xu, Linfeng; Koh, Domin; Nyayapathi, Nikhila; Oh, Kwang W

2014-09-12

In this paper, we review recent advances in on-chip sensors integrated with microfluidics for biological applications. Since the 1990s, much research has concentrated on developing a sensing system using optical phenomena such as surface plasmon resonance (SPR) and surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) to improve the sensitivity of the device. The sensing performance can be significantly enhanced with the use of microfluidic chips to provide effective liquid manipulation and greater flexibility. We describe an optical image sensor with a simpler platform for better performance over a larger field of view (FOV) and greater depth of field (DOF). As a new trend, we review consumer electronics such as smart phones, tablets, Google glasses, etc. which are being incorporated in point-of-care (POC) testing systems. In addition, we discuss in detail the current optical sensing system integrated with a microfluidic chip.

Application of Negative Curvature Hollow-Core Fiber in an Optical Fiber Sensor Setup for Multiphoton Spectroscopy

PubMed Central

Stawska, Hanna Izabela; Mazur, Leszek Mateusz; Kosolapov, Alexey; Kolyadin, Anton; Bereś-Pawlik, Elżbieta

2017-01-01

In this paper, an application of negative curvature hollow core fiber (NCHCF) in an all-fiber, multiphoton fluorescence sensor setup is presented. The dispersion parameter (D) of this fiber does not exceed the value of 5 ps/nm × km across the optical spectrum of (680–750) nm, making it well suited for the purpose of multiphoton excitation of biological fluorophores. Employing 1.5 m of this fiber in a simple, all-fiber sensor setup allows us to perform multiphoton experiments without any dispersion compensation methods. Multiphoton excitation of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) and flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) with this fiber shows a 6- and 9-fold increase, respectively, in the total fluorescence signal collected when compared with the commercial solution in the form of a hollow-core photonic band gap fiber (HCPBF). To the author’s best knowledge, this is the first time an NCHCF was used in an optical-fiber sensor setup for multiphoton fluorescence experiments. PMID:28984838

Application of Negative Curvature Hollow-Core Fiber in an Optical Fiber Sensor Setup for Multiphoton Spectroscopy.

PubMed

Popenda, Maciej Andrzej; Stawska, Hanna Izabela; Mazur, Leszek Mateusz; Jakubowski, Konrad; Kosolapov, Alexey; Kolyadin, Anton; Bereś-Pawlik, Elżbieta

2017-10-06

In this paper, an application of negative curvature hollow core fiber (NCHCF) in an all-fiber, multiphoton fluorescence sensor setup is presented. The dispersion parameter (D) of this fiber does not exceed the value of 5 ps/nm × km across the optical spectrum of (680-750) nm, making it well suited for the purpose of multiphoton excitation of biological fluorophores. Employing 1.5 m of this fiber in a simple, all-fiber sensor setup allows us to perform multiphoton experiments without any dispersion compensation methods. Multiphoton excitation of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) and flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD) with this fiber shows a 6- and 9-fold increase, respectively, in the total fluorescence signal collected when compared with the commercial solution in the form of a hollow-core photonic band gap fiber (HCPBF). To the author's best knowledge, this is the first time an NCHCF was used in an optical-fiber sensor setup for multiphoton fluorescence experiments.

A sensitive optical micro-machined ultrasound sensor (OMUS) based on a silicon photonic ring resonator on an acoustical membrane.

PubMed

Leinders, S M; Westerveld, W J; Pozo, J; van Neer, P L M J; Snyder, B; O'Brien, P; Urbach, H P; de Jong, N; Verweij, M D

2015-09-22

With the increasing use of ultrasonography, especially in medical imaging, novel fabrication techniques together with novel sensor designs are needed to meet the requirements for future applications like three-dimensional intercardiac and intravascular imaging. These applications require arrays of many small elements to selectively record the sound waves coming from a certain direction. Here we present proof of concept of an optical micro-machined ultrasound sensor (OMUS) fabricated with a semi-industrial CMOS fabrication line. The sensor is based on integrated photonics, which allows for elements with small spatial footprint. We demonstrate that the first prototype is already capable of detecting pressures of 0.4 Pa, which matches the performance of the state of the art piezo-electric transducers while having a 65 times smaller spatial footprint. The sensor is compatible with MRI due to the lack of electronical wiring. Another important benefit of the use of integrated photonics is the easy interrogation of an array of elements. Hence, in future designs only two optical fibers are needed to interrogate an entire array, which minimizes the amount of connections of smart catheters. The demonstrated OMUS has potential applications in medical ultrasound imaging, non destructive testing as well as in flow sensing.

Novel designs for application specific MEMS pressure sensors.

PubMed

Fragiacomo, Giulio; Reck, Kasper; Lorenzen, Lasse; Thomsen, Erik V

2010-01-01

In the framework of developing innovative microfabricated pressure sensors, we present here three designs based on different readout principles, each one tailored for a specific application. A touch mode capacitive pressure sensor with high sensitivity (14 pF/bar), low temperature dependence and high capacitive output signal (more than 100 pF) is depicted. An optical pressure sensor intrinsically immune to electromagnetic interference, with large pressure range (0-350 bar) and a sensitivity of 1 pm/bar is presented. Finally, a resonating wireless pressure sensor power source free with a sensitivity of 650 KHz/mmHg is described. These sensors will be related with their applications in harsh environment, distributed systems and medical environment, respectively. For many aspects, commercially available sensors, which in vast majority are piezoresistive, are not suited for the applications proposed.

"Reactive" optical sensor for Hg2+ and its application in environmental aqueous media and biological systems.

PubMed

Chen, Zhi; Chen, Jiayun; Pan, Dong; Li, Hongwei; Yao, Yunhui; Lyu, Zu; Yang, Liting; Ma, Li-Jun

2017-03-01

A new rhodamine B-based "reactive" optical sensor (1) for Hg 2+ was synthesized. Sensor 1 shows a unique colorimetric and fluorescent "turn-on" selectivity to Hg 2+ over 14 other metal ions with a hypersensitivity (detection limits are 27.6 nM (5.5 ppb) and 6.9 nM (1.4 ppb), respectively) in neutral buffer solution. To test its applicability in the environment, sensor 1 was applied to quantify and visualize low levels of Hg 2+ in tap water and river water samples. The results indicate sensor 1 is a highly sensitive fluorescent sensor for Hg 2+ with a detection limit of 1.7 ppb in tap water and river water. Moreover, sensor 1 is a convenient visualizing sensor for low levels of Hg 2+ (0.1 ppm) in water environment (from colorless to light pink). In addition, sensor 1 shows good potential as a fluorescent visualizing sensor for Hg 2+ in fetal bovine serum and living 293T cells. The results indicate that sensor 1 shows good potential as a highly sensitive sensor for the detection of Hg 2+ in environmental and biological samples. Graphical Abstract A new rhodamine B-based "reactive" optical sensor (1) for Hg 2+ was synthesized. 1 shows a unique colorimetric and fluorescent "turn-on" selectivity to Hg 2+ over 14 other metal ions with a hypersensitivity in water environment. And it is a convenient visualizing probe for low levels of Hg 2+ in environment aqueous media, fetal bovine serum and living 293T cells.

Real-time digital signal processing for live electro-optic imaging.

PubMed

Sasagawa, Kiyotaka; Kanno, Atsushi; Tsuchiya, Masahiro

2009-08-31

We present an imaging system that enables real-time magnitude and phase detection of modulated signals and its application to a Live Electro-optic Imaging (LEI) system, which realizes instantaneous visualization of RF electric fields. The real-time acquisition of magnitude and phase images of a modulated optical signal at 5 kHz is demonstrated by imaging with a Si-based high-speed CMOS image sensor and real-time signal processing with a digital signal processor. In the LEI system, RF electric fields are probed with light via an electro-optic crystal plate and downconverted to an intermediate frequency by parallel optical heterodyning, which can be detected with the image sensor. The artifacts caused by the optics and the image sensor characteristics are corrected by image processing. As examples, we demonstrate real-time visualization of electric fields from RF circuits.

D-Shaped Polarization Maintaining Fiber Sensor for Strain and Temperature Monitoring.

PubMed

Qazi, Hummad Habib; Mohammad, Abu Bakar; Ahmad, Harith; Zulkifli, Mohd Zamani

2016-09-15

A D-shaped polarization-maintaining fiber (PMF) as fiber optic sensor for the simultaneous monitoring of strain and the surrounding temperature is presented. A mechanical end and edge polishing system with aluminum oxide polishing film is utilized to perform sequential polishing on one side (lengthwise) of the PMF in order to fabricate a D-shaped cross-section. Experimental results show that the proposed sensor has high sensitivity of 46 pm/µε and 130 pm/°C for strain and temperature, respectively, which is significantly higher than other recently reported work (mainly from 2013) related to fiber optic sensors. The easy fabrication method, high sensitivity, and good linearity make this sensing device applicable in various applications such as health monitoring and spatial analysis of engineering structures.

D-Shaped Polarization Maintaining Fiber Sensor for Strain and Temperature Monitoring

PubMed Central

Qazi, Hummad Habib; Mohammad, Abu Bakar; Ahmad, Harith; Zulkifli, Mohd Zamani

2016-01-01

A D-shaped polarization-maintaining fiber (PMF) as fiber optic sensor for the simultaneous monitoring of strain and the surrounding temperature is presented. A mechanical end and edge polishing system with aluminum oxide polishing film is utilized to perform sequential polishing on one side (lengthwise) of the PMF in order to fabricate a D-shaped cross-section. Experimental results show that the proposed sensor has high sensitivity of 46 pm/µε and 130 pm/°C for strain and temperature, respectively, which is significantly higher than other recently reported work (mainly from 2013) related to fiber optic sensors. The easy fabrication method, high sensitivity, and good linearity make this sensing device applicable in various applications such as health monitoring and spatial analysis of engineering structures. PMID:27649195

Pocket-Size Interferometric Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Waters, James P.; Fernald, Mark R.

1990-04-01

Optical sensors have the intrinsic advantages over electronic sensors of complete safety in hazardous areas and absolute immunity from both transmitting or picking up electromagnetic radiation. However, adoption of optical sensors in real-world applications requires a sensor design which has a sensitivity, resolution, and dynamic range comparable to an equivalent electronic sensor and at the same time must fulfill the practical considerations of small size and low cost. While sensitivity, resolution and dynamic range can be easily achieved with optical heterodyne sensors, the practical considerations make their near-term adoption unlikely. Significant improvements to optical heterodyne vibration and velocity sensors (flexibility, reliability and environmental immunity) have been realized with the use of semiconductor lasers, optical fibers and fiber-optic components. In fact, all of the discrete optical components in a heterodyne interferometer have been replaced with much smaller and more rugged devices except for the optical frequency shifter, acousto-optic modulator (AOM). The AOM and associated power supply, however, account for a substantial portion of both the size and cost. Previous work has shown that an integrated-optic, serrodyne phase modulator with an inexpensive drive circuit can be used for single sideband heterodyne detection. This paper describes the next step, design and implementation of a heterodyne interferometer using integrated-Optic technology to provide the polarization maintaining couplers and phase modulator. The couplers were made using a proton exchange process which produced devices with an extinction ratio of better than 40 dB. The serrodyne phase modulator had the advantage over an AOM of being considerably smaller and having a drive power of less than a milliwatt. The results of this work show that this technology is an effective way of reducing the size of the system and the cost of multiple units without sacarifying performance.

Optics detection and laser countermeasures on a combat vehicle

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sjöqvist, Lars; Allard, Lars; Pettersson, Magnus; Börjesson, Per; Lindskog, Nils; Bodin, Johan; Widén, Anders; Persson, Hâkan; Fredriksson, Jan; Edström, Sten

2016-10-01

Magnifying optical assemblies used for weapon guidance or rifle scopes may possess a threat for a combat vehicle and its personnel. Detection and localisation of optical threats is consequently of interest in military applications. Typically a laser system is used in optics detection, or optical augmentation, to interrogate a scene of interest to localise retroreflected laser radiation. One interesting approach for implementing optics detection on a combat vehicle is to use a continuous scanning scheme. In addition, optics detection can be combined with laser countermeasures, or a laser dazzling function, to efficiently counter an optical threat. An optics detection laser sensor demonstrator has been implemented on a combat vehicle. The sensor consists of a stabilised gimbal and was integrated together with a LEMUR remote electro-optical sight. A narrow laser slit is continuously scanned around the horizon to detect and locate optical threats. Detected threats are presented for the operator within the LEMUR presentation system, and by cueing a countermeasure laser installed in the LEMUR sensor housing threats can be defeated. Results obtained during a field demonstration of the optics detection sensor and the countermeasure laser will be presented. In addition, results obtained using a dual-channel optics detection system designed for false alarm reduction are also discussed.

A forty-year history of fiber optic smart structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Udd, Eric; Scheel, Ingrid U.

2017-04-01

In 1977 McDonnell Douglas Astronautics Company began a project on using fiber optic sensors to support the Delta Rocket program. This resulted in a series of fiber sensors to support the measurement of rotation, acoustics, vibration, strain, and temperature for a variety of applications and early work on fiber optic smart structures. The work on fiber optic smart structures transitioned in part to Blue Road Research in 1993 and continued in 2006 to the present at Columbia Gorge Research. This paper summarizes some of the efforts made by these companies to implement fiber optic smart structures over this forty year period.

Design of a fiber-optic interrogator module for telecommunication satellites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Putzer, Philipp; Koch, Alexander W.; Plattner, Markus; Hurni, Andreas; Manhart, Markus

2017-11-01

In this paper we present the results of the radiation tests performed on the optical components of the fiber-optic interrogator module as a part of the Hybrid Sensor Bus (HSB) system. The HSB-system is developed in the frame of an ESAARTES program and will be verified as flight demonstrator onboard the German Heinrich Hertz satellite in 2016. The HSB system is based on a modular concept which includes sensor interrogation modules based on I2C electrical and fiber Bragg grating (FBG) fiber-optical sensor elements. Onboard fiber-optic sensing allows the implementation of novel control and monitoring methods. For read-out of multiple FBG sensors, a design based on a tunable laser diode as well as a design based on a spectrometer is considered. The expected and tested total ionizing dose (TID) applicable to the HSB system is in the range between 100 krad and 300 krad inside the satellite in the geostationary orbit over a life time of 15 years. We present radiation test results carried out on critical optical components to be used in the fiber-optic interrogation module. These components are a modulated grating Y-branch (MGY) tunable laser diode acting as light source for the tuning laser approach, the line detector of a spectrometer, photodetectors and the FBG sensors acting as sensor elements. A detailed literature inquiry of radiation effects on optical fibers and FBG sensors, is also included in the paper. The fiber-optic interrogator module implemented in the HSB system is based on the most suitable technology, which sustains the harsh environment in the geostationary orbit.

Developing improved silica materials and devices for integrated optics applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maker, Ashley Julia

Due to their favorable optical and material properties, silica-based materials and devices have found many important applications throughout science and engineering, especially in sensing, communications, lasers, and integrated optics. Often, silica's properties ultimately limit the performance of these applications. To address this limitation, this thesis investigates the development of improved silica materials and optical devices, including silica films, coatings, waveguides, resonators, lasers, and sensors. Using sol-gel chemistry and microfabrication procedures, custom silica materials and devices are developed to benefit many applications. In this thesis, it is first demonstrated how the low optical loss of silica enables fabrication of low loss integrated waveguides and toroidal resonators with ultra-high quality factors. Then, by adding various rare earth and metal dopants to sol-gel silica, hybrid silica materials and devices are made with custom properties such as high refractive index and lasing capabilities. Finally, several applications are demonstrated, including the use of high refractive index coatings to control the behavior of light, development of Raman and ultra-low threshold rare earth microlasers, and a heterodyned microlaser sensor with significantly improved sensing performance. Future applications and directions of this research are also discussed.

Hermetic diode laser transmitter module

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ollila, Jyrki; Kautio, Kari; Vahakangas, Jouko; Hannula, Tapio; Kopola, Harri K.; Oikarinen, Jorma; Sivonen, Matti

1999-04-01

In very demanding optoelectronic sensor applications it is necessary to encapsulate semiconductor components hermetically in metal housings to ensure reliable operation of the sensor. In this paper we report on the development work to package a laser diode transmitter module for a time- off-light distance sensor application. The module consists of a lens, laser diode, electronic circuit and optomechanics. Specifications include high acceleration, -40....+75 degree(s)C temperature range, very low gas leakage and mass-production capability. We have applied solder glasses for sealing optical lenses and electrical leads hermetically into a metal case. The lens-metal case sealing has been made by using a special soldering glass preform preserving the optical quality of the lens. The metal housings are finally sealed in an inert atmosphere by welding. The assembly concept to retain excellent optical power and tight optical axis alignment specifications is described. The reliability of the laser modules manufactured has been extensively tested using different aging and environmental test procedures. Sealed packages achieve MIL- 883 standard requirements for gas leakage.

Optical fiber strain sensor for application in intelligent intruder detection systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stańczyk, Tomasz; Tenderenda, Tadeusz; Szostkiewicz, Lukasz; Bienkowska, Beata; Kunicki, Daniel; Murawski, Michal; Mergo, Pawel; Nasilowski, Tomasz

2017-10-01

Nowadays technology allows to create highly effective Intruder Detection Systems (IDS), that are able to detect the presence of an intruder within a defined area. In such systems the best performance can be achieved by combining different detection techniques in one system. One group of devices that can be applied in an IDS, are devices based on Fiber Optic Sensors (FOS). The FOS benefits from numerous advantages of optical fibers like: small size, light weight or high sensitivity. In this work we present a novel Microstructured Optical Fiber (MOF) characterized by increased strain sensitivity dedicated to distributed acoustic sensing for intelligent intruder detection systems. By designing the MOF with large air holes in close proximity to a fiber core, we increased the effective refractive index sensitivity to longitudinal strain. The presented fiber can be easily integrated in a floor system in order to detect any movement in the investigated area. We believe that sensors, based on the presented MOF, due to its numerous advantages, can find application in intelligent IDS.

[INVITED] Recent advances in surface plasmon resonance based fiber optic chemical and biosensors utilizing bulk and nanostructures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gupta, Banshi D.; Kant, Ravi

2018-05-01

Surface plasmon resonance has established itself as an immensely acclaimed and influential optical sensing tool with quintessential applications in life sciences, environmental monitoring, clinical diagnostics, pharmaceutical developments and ensuring food safety. The implementation of sensing principle of surface plasmon resonance employing an optical fiber as a substrate has concomitantly resulted in the evolution of fiber optic surface plasmon resonance as an exceptionally lucrative scaffold for chemical and biosensing applications. This perspective article outlines the contemporary studies on fiber optic sensors founded on the sensing architecture of propagating as well as localized surface plasmon resonance. An in-depth review of the prevalent analytical and surface chemical tactics involved in configuring the sensing layer over an optical fiber for the detection of various chemical and biological entities is presented. The involvement of nanomaterials as a strategic approach to enhance the sensor sensitivity is furnished concurrently providing an insight into the diverse geometrical blueprints for designing fiber optic sensing probes. Representative examples from the literature are discussed to appreciate the latest advancements in this potentially valuable research avenue. The article concludes by identifying some of the key challenges and exploring the opportunities for expanding the scope and impact of surface plasmon resonance based fiber optic sensors.

A Research on Low Modulus Distributed Fiber Optical Sensor for Pavement Material Strain Monitoring

PubMed Central

Meng, Lingjian; Wang, Linbing; Hou, Yue; Yan, Guannan

2017-01-01

The accumulated irreversible deformation in pavement under repeated vehicle loadings will cause fatigue failure of asphalt concrete. It is necessary to monitor the mechanical response of pavement under load by using sensors. Previous studies have limitations in modulus accommodation between the sensor and asphalt pavement, and it is difficult to achieve the distributed monitoring goal. To solve these problems, a new type of low modulus distributed optical fiber sensor (DOFS) for asphalt pavement strain monitoring is fabricated. Laboratory experiments have proved the applicability and accuracy of the newly-designed sensor. This paper presents the results of the development. PMID:29048393

A Research on Low Modulus Distributed Fiber Optical Sensor for Pavement Material Strain Monitoring.

PubMed

Meng, Lingjian; Wang, Linbing; Hou, Yue; Yan, Guannan

2017-10-19

The accumulated irreversible deformation in pavement under repeated vehicle loadings will cause fatigue failure of asphalt concrete. It is necessary to monitor the mechanical response of pavement under load by using sensors. Previous studies have limitations in modulus accommodation between the sensor and asphalt pavement, and it is difficult to achieve the distributed monitoring goal. To solve these problems, a new type of low modulus distributed optical fiber sensor (DOFS) for asphalt pavement strain monitoring is fabricated. Laboratory experiments have proved the applicability and accuracy of the newly-designed sensor. This paper presents the results of the development.

FIBER OPTICS: Fibre optics: Forty years later

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dianov, Evgenii M.

2010-01-01

This paper presents a brief overview of the state of the art in fibre optics and its main applications: optical fibre communications, fibre lasers and fibre sensors for various physical property measurements. The future of fibre optics and the status of this important area of the modern technology in Russia are discussed.

Diffractive optics technology and the NASA Geostationary Earth Observatory (GEO)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Morris, G. Michael; Michaels, Robert L.; Faklis, Dean

1992-01-01

Diffractive (or binary) optics offers unique capabilities for the development of large-aperture, high-performance, light-weight optical systems. The Geostationary Earth Observatory (GEO) will consist of a variety of instruments to monitor the environmental conditions of the earth and its atmosphere. The aim of this investigation is to analyze the design of the GEO instrument that is being proposed and to identify the areas in which diffractive (or binary) optics technology can make a significant impact in GEO sensor design. Several potential applications where diffractive optics may indeed serve as a key technology for improving the performance and reducing the weight and cost of the GEO sensors have been identified. Applications include the use of diffractive/refractive hybrid lenses for aft-optic imagers, diffractive telescopes for narrowband imaging, subwavelength structured surfaces for anti-reflection and polarization control, and aberration compensation for reflective imaging systems and grating spectrometers.

Fabrication of All-SiC Fiber-Optic Pressure Sensors for High-Temperature Applications

PubMed Central

Jiang, Yonggang; Li, Jian; Zhou, Zhiwen; Jiang, Xinggang; Zhang, Deyuan

2016-01-01

Single-crystal silicon carbide (SiC)-based pressure sensors can be used in harsh environments, as they exhibit stable mechanical and electrical properties at elevated temperatures. A fiber-optic pressure sensor with an all-SiC sensor head was fabricated and is herein proposed. SiC sensor diaphragms were fabricated via an ultrasonic vibration mill-grinding (UVMG) method, which resulted in a small grinding force and low surface roughness. The sensor head was formed by hermetically bonding two layers of SiC using a nickel diffusion bonding method. The pressure sensor illustrated a good linearity in the range of 0.1–0.9 MPa, with a resolution of 0.27% F.S. (full scale) at room temperature. PMID:27763494

Fabrication of All-SiC Fiber-Optic Pressure Sensors for High-Temperature Applications.

PubMed

Jiang, Yonggang; Li, Jian; Zhou, Zhiwen; Jiang, Xinggang; Zhang, Deyuan

2016-10-17

Single-crystal silicon carbide (SiC)-based pressure sensors can be used in harsh environments, as they exhibit stable mechanical and electrical properties at elevated temperatures. A fiber-optic pressure sensor with an all-SiC sensor head was fabricated and is herein proposed. SiC sensor diaphragms were fabricated via an ultrasonic vibration mill-grinding (UVMG) method, which resulted in a small grinding force and low surface roughness. The sensor head was formed by hermetically bonding two layers of SiC using a nickel diffusion bonding method. The pressure sensor illustrated a good linearity in the range of 0.1-0.9 MPa, with a resolution of 0.27% F.S. (full scale) at room temperature.

A sensor-type application of a self-oscillating dynamic system with a fiber optic feedback line, including chemical sensors and biosensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rabinovich, Emmanuel M.

2004-05-01

We present an overview of research, conducted and published by the author and colleagues during the preceding decade, with self-oscillating dynamic systems. Special attention has been addressed to sensor type applications that allow one to design a new type of sensors of different physical parameters as well as using system for chemical and biosensors. Many detection methods exploit self-oscillating systems, such as lasers and RF or microwave oscillators, and use changes introduced into a feedback mechanism (for instance laser inter-cavity spectroscopy) for evaluation of different physical parameters such as refractive indices or absorption coefficients. Typically, that approach is very efficient, is easy to implement, and gives high sensitivity. We have demonstrated that a similar method can be used in the case of an RF optoelectronic self-oscillating system (OSOS) with a fiber-optic feedback line. Using fiber as an element of a positive feedback line allows one to design a new family of fiber-optic sensors each of which can be integrated into a fiber-optic feedback line. Changes introduced into the feedback line of an OSOS typically cause an RF frequency shift that can be measured very precisely with an RF frequency counter or spectrum analyzer. For some types of sensors an OSOS can easily incorporate and utilize advantages of well-developed modern inexpensive light sources (VCSELs, LEDs) and opto-electronic components that have been designed for communication purposes. A single closed loop OSOS can be easily duplicated for sensor array measurement via the use of parallel fiber-optics (for example VCSEL arrays and fiber ribbon cables) that have been well developed for telecommunication systems.

Preliminary Design of a Lightning Optical Camera and ThundEr (LOCATE) Sensor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Phanord, Dieudonne D.; Koshak, William J.; Rybski, Paul M.; Arnold, James E. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

The preliminary design of an optical/acoustical instrument is described for making highly accurate real-time determinations of the location of cloud-to-ground (CG) lightning. The instrument, named the Lightning Optical Camera And ThundEr (LOCATE) sensor, will also image the clear and cloud-obscured lightning channel produced from CGs and cloud flashes, and will record the transient optical waveforms produced from these discharges. The LOCATE sensor will consist of a full (360 degrees) field-of-view optical camera for obtaining CG channel image and azimuth, a sensitive thunder microphone for obtaining CG range, and a fast photodiode system for time-resolving the lightning optical waveform. The optical waveform data will be used to discriminate CGs from cloud flashes. Together, the optical azimuth and thunder range is used to locate CGs and it is anticipated that a network of LOCATE sensors would determine CG source location to well within 100 meters. All of this would be accomplished for a relatively inexpensive cost compared to present RF lightning location technologies, but of course the range detection is limited and will be quantified in the future. The LOCATE sensor technology would have practical applications for electric power utility companies, government (e.g. NASA Kennedy Space Center lightning safety and warning), golf resort lightning safety, telecommunications, and other industries.

Calibration and energy measurement of optically levitated nanoparticle sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hebestreit, Erik; Frimmer, Martin; Reimann, René; Dellago, Christoph; Ricci, Francesco; Novotny, Lukas

2018-03-01

Optically levitated nanoparticles offer enormous potential for precision sensing. However, as for any other metrology device, the absolute measurement performance of a levitated-particle sensor is limited by the accuracy of the calibration relating the measured signal to an absolute displacement of the particle. Here, we suggest and demonstrate calibration protocols for levitated-nanoparticle sensors. Our calibration procedures include the treatment of anharmonicities in the trapping potential, as well as a protocol using a harmonic driving force, which is applicable if the sensor is coupled to a heat bath of unknown temperature. Finally, using the calibration, we determine the center-of-mass temperature of an optically levitated particle in thermal equilibrium from its motion and discuss the optimal measurement time required to determine the said temperature.

A fiber optic sensor for ophthalmic refractive diagnostics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ansari, Rafat R.; Dhadwal, Harbans S.; Campbell, Melanie C. W.; Dellavecchia, Michael A.

1992-01-01

This paper demonstrates the application of a lensless fiber optic spectrometer (sensor) to study the onset of cataracts. This new miniaturized and rugged fiber optic probe is based upon dynamic light scattering (DLS) principles. It has no moving parts, no apertures, and requires no optical alignment. It is flexible and easy to use. Results are presented for cold-induced cataract in excised bovine eye lenses, and aging effects in excised human eye lenses. The device can be easily incorporated into a slit-lamp apparatus (ophthalmoscope) for complete eye diagnostics.

Demonstration of a Fiber Optic Regression Probe in a High-Temperature Flow

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Korman, Valentin; Polzin, Kurt

2011-01-01

The capability to provide localized, real-time monitoring of material regression rates in various applications has the potential to provide a new stream of data for development testing of various components and systems, as well as serving as a monitoring tool in flight applications. These applications include, but are not limited to, the regression of a combusting solid fuel surface, the ablation of the throat in a chemical rocket or the heat shield of an aeroshell, and the monitoring of erosion in long-life plasma thrusters. The rate of regression in the first application is very fast, while the second and third are increasingly slower. A recent fundamental sensor development effort has led to a novel regression, erosion, and ablation sensor technology (REAST). The REAST sensor allows for measurement of real-time surface erosion rates at a discrete surface location. The sensor is optical, using two different, co-located fiber-optics to perform the regression measurement. The disparate optical transmission properties of the two fiber-optics makes it possible to measure the regression rate by monitoring the relative light attenuation through the fibers. As the fibers regress along with the parent material in which they are embedded, the relative light intensities through the two fibers changes, providing a measure of the regression rate. The optical nature of the system makes it relatively easy to use in a variety of harsh, high temperature environments, and it is also unaffected by the presence of electric and magnetic fields. In addition, the sensor could be used to perform optical spectroscopy on the light emitted by a process and collected by fibers, giving localized measurements of various properties. The capability to perform an in-situ measurement of material regression rates is useful in addressing a variety of physical issues in various applications. An in-situ measurement allows for real-time data regarding the erosion rates, providing a quick method for empirically anchoring any analysis geared towards lifetime qualification. Erosion rate data over an operating envelope could also be useful in the modeling detailed physical processes. The sensor has been embedded in many regressing media to demonstrate the capabilities in a number of regressing environments. In the present work, sensors were installed in the eroding/regressing throat region of a converging-diverging flow, with the working gas heated to high temperatures by means of a high-pressure arc discharge at steady-state discharge power levels up to 500 kW. The amount of regression observed in each material sample was quantified using a later profilometer, which was compared to the in-situ erosion measurements to demonstrate the efficacy of the measurement technique in very harsh, high-temperature environments.

Smart image sensors: an emerging key technology for advanced optical measurement and microsystems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seitz, Peter

1996-08-01

Optical microsystems typically include photosensitive devices, analog preprocessing circuitry and digital signal processing electronics. The advances in semiconductor technology have made it possible today to integrate all photosensitive and electronical devices on one 'smart image sensor' or photo-ASIC (application-specific integrated circuits containing photosensitive elements). It is even possible to provide each 'smart pixel' with additional photoelectronic functionality, without compromising the fill factor substantially. This technological capability is the basis for advanced cameras and optical microsystems showing novel on-chip functionality: Single-chip cameras with on- chip analog-to-digital converters for less than $10 are advertised; image sensors have been developed including novel functionality such as real-time selectable pixel size and shape, the capability of performing arbitrary convolutions simultaneously with the exposure, as well as variable, programmable offset and sensitivity of the pixels leading to image sensors with a dynamic range exceeding 150 dB. Smart image sensors have been demonstrated offering synchronous detection and demodulation capabilities in each pixel (lock-in CCD), and conventional image sensors are combined with an on-chip digital processor for complete, single-chip image acquisition and processing systems. Technological problems of the monolithic integration of smart image sensors include offset non-uniformities, temperature variations of electronic properties, imperfect matching of circuit parameters, etc. These problems can often be overcome either by designing additional compensation circuitry or by providing digital correction routines. Where necessary for technological or economic reasons, smart image sensors can also be combined with or realized as hybrids, making use of commercially available electronic components. It is concluded that the possibilities offered by custom smart image sensors will influence the design and the performance of future electronic imaging systems in many disciplines, reaching from optical metrology to machine vision on the factory floor and in robotics applications.

Solid state lasers for use in non-contact temperature measurements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Buoncristiani, A. M.

1989-01-01

The last decade has seen a series of dramatic developments in solid state laser technology. Prominent among these has been the emergence of high power semiconductor laser diode arrays and a deepening understanding of the dynamics of solid state lasers. Taken in tandem these two developments enable the design of laser diode pumped solid state lasers. Pumping solid state lasers with semiconductor diodes relieves the need for cumbersome and inefficient flashlamps and results in an efficient and stable laser with the compactness and reliability. It provides a laser source that can be reliably used in space. These new coherent sources are incorporated into the non-contact measurement of temperature. The primary focus is the development and characterization of new optical materials for use in active remote sensors of the atmosphere. In the course of this effort several new materials and new concepts were studied which can be used for other sensor applications. The general approach to the problem of new non-contact temperature measurements has had two components. The first component centers on passive sensors using optical fibers; an optical fiber temperature sensor for the drop tube was designed and tested at the Marshall Space Flight Center. Work on this problem has given insight into the use of optical fibers, especially new IR fibers, in thermal metrology. The second component of the effort is to utilize the experience gained in the study of passive sensors to examine new active sensor concepts. By active sensor are defined as a sensing device or mechanism which is interrogated in some way be radiation, usually from a laser. The status of solid state lasers as sources for active non-contact temperature sensors are summarized. Some specific electro-optic techniques are described which are applicable to the sensor problems at hand. Work on some of these ideas is in progress while other concepts are still being worked out.

Multi-parameter measurements using optical fibre long period gratings for indoor air quality monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hromadka, J.; Korposh, S.; Partridge, M. C.; James, S.; Davis, F.; Crump, D.; Lee, S.-W.; Tatam, R. P.

2017-04-01

An array of three long period gratings (LPGs) fabricated in a single optical fibre and multiplexed in the wavelength domain was used to measure simultaneously temperature, relative humidity (RH) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Each LPG sensor was designed to optimize its response to a desired measurand. The LPGs were fabricated with periods such that they operated at or near the phase matching turning point. The sensors were calibrated in the laboratory and the simultaneous measurement of the key indoor air quality parameters was undertaken in laboratory and office environments. It was demonstrated successfully that the data produced by the LPG sensor array under real conditions was in a good agreement with that produced by commercially available sensors. Further, the potential application of fibre optic sensors for VOCs detection at high levels has been demonstrated.

Surface Plasmon Resonance Sensors on Raman and Fluorescence Spectroscopy

PubMed Central

Wang, Jiangcai; Lin, Weihua; Cao, En; Xu, Xuefeng; Liang, Wenjie; Zhang, Xiaofang

2017-01-01

The performance of chemical reactions has been enhanced immensely with surface plasmon resonance (SPR)-based sensors. In this review, the principle and application of SPR sensors are introduced and summarized thoroughly. We introduce the mechanism of the SPR sensors and present a thorough summary about the optical design, including the substrate and excitation modes of the surface plasmons. Additionally, the applications based on SPR sensors are described by the Raman and fluorescence spectroscopy in plasmon-driven surface catalytic reactions and the measurement of refractive index sensing, especially. PMID:29212139

The role of local interaction mechanics in fiber optic smart structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sirkis, J. S.; Dasgupta, A.

1993-04-01

The concept of using 'smart' composite materials/structures with built-in self-diagnostic capabilities for health monitoring involves embedding discrete and/or distributed sensory networks in the host composite material, along with a central and/or distributed artificial intelligence capability for signal processing, data collection, interpretation and diagnostic evaluations. This article concentrates on the sensory functions in 'smart' structure applications and concentrates in particular on optical fiber sensors. Specifically, we present an overview of recent research dealing with the basic mechanics of local interactions between the embedded optical fiber sensors and the surrounding host composite. The term 'local' is defined by length scales on the order of several optical fiber diameters. We examine some generic issues, such as the 'calibration' and 'obtrusivity' of the sensor, and the inherent damage caused by the sensor inclusions to the surrounding host and vice-versa under internal and/or external applied loads. Analytical, numerical and experimental results are presented regarding the influence of local strain concentrations caused by the sensory inclusions on sensor and host performance. The important issues examined are the local mechanistic effects of optical fiber coatings on the behavior of the sensor and the host, and mechanical survivability of optical fibers experiencing quasi-static and time-varying thermomechanical loading.

Optical digitizing and strategies to combine different views of an optical sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Duwe, Hans P.

1997-09-01

Non-contact digitization of objects and surfaces with optical sensors based on fringe or pattern projection in combination with a CCD-camera allows a representation of surfaces with pointclouds equals x, y, z data points. To digitize the total surface of an object, it is necessary to combine the different measurement data obtained by the optical sensor from different views. Depending on the size of the object and the required accuracy of the measured data, different sensor set-ups with handling system or a combination of linear and rotation axes are described. Furthermore, strategies to match the overlapping pointclouds of a digitized object are introduced. This is very important especially for the digitization of large objects like 1:1 car models, etc. With different sensor sizes, it is possible to digitize small objects like teeth, crowns, inlays, etc. with an overall accuracy of 20 micrometer as well as large objects like car models, with a total accuracy of 0.5 mm. The various applications in the field of optical digitization are described.

HT/HP x-tree and downhole fiber optic connectors and their use on subsea intelligent wells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wright, Perry; Barlow, Stewart

2004-12-01

Offshore Oil and Gas R&D has been committed to improved reservoir performance through production monitoring. Technology improvements in these areas offer the greatest potential returns through increased knowledge of the reservoir, and the improvements in real-time production control that the technology and knowledge base can provide. One area of technology that supports this development is the growing application of fiber optic sensors for reservoir and production monitoring. These sensors cannot function in isolation, and need support in the form of fiber optic connection systems for x-tree penetrations. ODI have been developing products for fiber optic tree penetrations and down-hole wet connections for the last 4 years, working with Intelligent Wells Group at BP America Production Company in Houston. This paper discusses the application and reliability of fiber optic connectors, and reviews the development of the ODI I-CONN connection system and its application for vertical and horizontal x-trees, work-over systems and running tools, and down-hole systems.

Photonic molecules for application in silicon-on-insulator optical sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barea, Luis A. M.; Souza, Mario C. M. M.; Moras, Andre L.; Catellan, Alvaro R. G.; Cirino, Giuseppe A.; Von Zuben, Antonio A. G.; Bassani, Jose W. M.; Frateschi, Newton C.

2018-02-01

Optical sensors based on integrated photonics have experienced impressive advancements in the past few decades and represent one of the main sensing solutions in many areas including environmental sensing and medical diagnostics. In this context, optical microcavities are extensively employed as refractive index (RI) sensors, providing sharp optical resonances that allow the detection of very small variations in the surrounding RI. With increased sensitivity, however, the device is subjected to environmental perturbations that can also change the RI, such as temperature variations, and therefore compromise their reliability. In this work, we present the concept and experimental realization of a photonic sensor based on coupled microcavities or Photonic Molecules (PM) in which only one cavity is exposed to the sensing solution, allowing a differential measurement of the RI change. The device consists of an exposed 5-μm radius microdisk resonator coupled to an external clad microring resonator fabricated on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) platform. This design allows good sensitivity (26 nm/RIU) for transverse electrical mode (TE-mode) in a compact footprint (40 × 40 μm2), representing a good solution for real-life applications in which measurement conditions are not easily controllable.

Threshold temperature optical fibre sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stasiewicz, K. A.; Musial, J. E.

2016-12-01

This paper presents a new approach to manufacture a threshold temperature sensor based on a biconical optical fibre taper. The presented sensor employs the influence of variable state of concentration of some isotropic materials like wax or paraffin. Application of the above- mentioned materials is an attempt to prove that there is a possibility to obtain a low-cost, repeatable and smart sensor working as an in-line element. Optical fibre taper was obtained from a standard single mode fibre (SMF28®) by using a low pressure gas burner technique. The diameter of the manufactured tapers was 6.0 ± 0.5 μm with the length of elongation equal to 30.50 ± 0.16 mm. The applied technology allowed to produce tapers with the losses of 0.183 ± 0.015 dB. Application of materials with different temperature transition points made it possible to obtain the threshold work at the temperatures connected directly with their conversion temperature. External materials at the temperatures above their melting points do not influence the propagation losses. For each of them two types of the protection area and position of the optical fibre taper were applied.

Recent Developments Of Optical Fiber Sensors For Automotive Use

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sasayama, Takao; Oho, Shigeru; Kuroiwa, Hiroshi; Suzuki, Seikoo

1987-12-01

Optical fiber sensing technologies are expected to apply for many future electronic control systems in automobiles, because of their original outstanding features, such as high noise immunity, high heat resistance, and flexible light propagation paths which can be applicable to measure the movements and directions of the mobiles. In this paper, two typical applications of fiber sensing technologies in automobiles have been described in detail. The combustion flame detector is one of the typical applications of a fiber spectroscopic technology which utilizes the feature of high noise and heat resistibility and remote sensibility. Measurements of engine combustion conditions, such as the detonation, the combustion initiation, and the air-fuel ratio, have been demonstrated in an experimental fiber sensing method. Fiber interferometers, such as a fiber gyroscope, have a lot of possibilities in future mobile applications because they are expandable to many kinds of measurements for movements and physical variables. An optical fiber gyroscope utilizing the single polarized optical fiber and optical devices has been developed. Quite an accurate measurement of vehicle position was displayed on a prototype navigation system which installed the fiber gyroscope as a rotational speed sensor.

Safe Detection System for Hydrogen Leaks

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lieberman, Robert A.; Beshay, Manal

2012-02-29

Hydrogen is an "environmentally friendly" fuel for future transportation and other applications, since it produces only pure ("distilled") water when it is consumed. Thus, hydrogen-powered vehicles are beginning to proliferate, with the total number of such vehicles expected to rise to nearly 100,000 within the next few years. However, hydrogen is also an odorless, colorless, highly flammable gas. Because of this, there is an important need for hydrogen safety monitors that can warn of hazardous conditions in vehicles, storage facilities, and hydrogen production plants. To address this need, IOS has developed a unique intrinsically safe optical hydrogen sensing technology, andmore » has embodied it in detector systems specifically developed for safety applications. The challenge of using light to detect a colorless substance was met by creating chemically-sensitized optical materials whose color changes in the presence of hydrogen. This reversible reaction provides a sensitive, reliable, way of detecting hydrogen and measuring its concentration using light from low-cost LEDs. Hydrogen sensors based on this material were developed in three completely different optical formats: point sensors ("optrodes"), integrated optic sensors ("optical chips"), and optical fibers ("distributed sensors") whose entire length responds to hydrogen. After comparing performance, cost, time-to-market, and relative market need for these sensor types, the project focused on designing a compact optrode-based single-point hydrogen safety monitor. The project ended with the fabrication of fifteen prototype units, and the selection of two specific markets: fuel cell enclosure monitoring, and refueling/storage safety. Final testing and development of control software for these markets await future support.« less

Sensored fiber reinforced polymer grate

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ross, Michael P.; Mack, Thomas Kimball

Various technologies described herein pertain to a sensored grate that can be utilized for various security fencing applications. The sensored grate includes a grate framework and an embedded optical fiber. The grate framework is formed of a molded polymer such as, for instance, molded fiber reinforced polymer. Further, the grate framework includes a set of elongated elements, where the elongated elements are spaced to define apertures through the grate framework. The optical fiber is embedded in the elongated elements of the grate framework. Moreover, bending or breaking of one or more of the elongated elements can be detected based onmore » a change in a characteristic of input light provided to the optical fiber compared to output light received from the optical fiber.« less

Assessment of the use of space technology in the monitoring of oil spills and ocean pollution: Technical volume. Executive summary

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Alvarado, U. R. (Editor); Chafaris, G.; Chestek, J.; Contrad, J.; Frippel, G.; Gulatsi, R.; Heath, A.; Hodara, H.; Kritikos, H.; Tamiyasu, K.

1980-01-01

The potential of space systems and technology for detecting and monitoring ocean oil spills and waste pollution was assessed as well as the impact of this application on communication and data handling systems. Agencies charged with responsibilities in this area were identified and their measurement requirements were ascertained in order to determine the spatial resolution needed to characterize operational and accidental discharges. Microwave and optical sensors and sensing techniques were evaluated as candidate system elements. Capabilities are described for the following: synthetic aperture radar, microwave scatterometer, passive microwave radiometer, microwave altimeter, electro-optical sensors currently used in airborne detection, existing space-based optical sensors, the thematic mapper, and the pointable optical linear array.

Recent progress in distributed optical fiber Raman photon sensors at China Jiliang University

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Zaixuan; Wang, Jianfeng; Li, Yi; Gong, Huaping; Yu, Xiangdong; Liu, Honglin; Jin, Yongxing; Kang, Juan; Li, Chenxia; Zhang, Wensheng; Zhang, Wenping; Niu, Xiaohui; Sun, Zhongzhou; Zhao, Chunliu; Dong, Xinyong; Jin, Shangzhong

2012-06-01

A brief review of recent progress in researches, productions and applications of full distributed fiber Raman photon sensors at China Jiliang University (CJLU) is presented. In order to improve the measurement distance, the accuracy, the space resolution, the ability of multi-parameter measurements, and the intelligence of full distributed fiber sensor systems, a new generation fiber sensor technology based on the optical fiber nonlinear scattering fusion principle is proposed. A series of new generation full distributed fiber sensors are investigated and designed, which consist of new generation ultra-long distance full distributed fiber Raman and Rayleigh scattering photon sensors integrated with a fiber Raman amplifier, auto-correction full distributed fiber Raman photon temperature sensors based on Raman correlation dual sources, full distributed fiber Raman photon temperature sensors based on a pulse coding source, full distributed fiber Raman photon temperature sensors using a fiber Raman wavelength shifter, a new type of Brillouin optical time domain analyzers (BOTDAs) integrated with a fiber Raman amplifier for replacing a fiber Brillouin amplifier, full distributed fiber Raman and Brillouin photon sensors integrated with a fiber Raman amplifier, and full distributed fiber Brillouin photon sensors integrated with a fiber Brillouin frequency shifter. The Internet of things is believed as one of candidates of the next technological revolution, which has driven hundreds of millions of class markets. Sensor networks are important components of the Internet of things. The full distributed optical fiber sensor network (Rayleigh, Raman, and Brillouin scattering) is a 3S (smart materials, smart structure, and smart skill) system, which is easy to construct smart fiber sensor networks. The distributed optical fiber sensor can be embedded in the power grids, railways, bridges, tunnels, roads, constructions, water supply systems, dams, oil and gas pipelines and other facilities, and can be integrated with wireless networks.

Etched optical fiber vibration sensor to monitor health condition of beam like structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Putha, Kishore; Dantala, Dinakar; Kamineni, Srimannarayana; Pachava, Vengal Rao

2013-06-01

Using a center etched single mode optical fiber, a simple vibration senor is designed to monitor the vibrations of a simply supported beam. The sensor has high linear response to the axial displacement of about 0.8 mm with a sensitivity of 32 mV/10 μm strain. The sensor is tested for periodic and suddenly released forces, and the results are found to coincide with the theoretical values. This simple design, small in size and low cost sensor may find applications in industry and civil engineering to monitor the vibrations of the beam structures and bridges.

Fiber-Optic Continuous Liquid Sensor for Cryogenic Propellant Gauging

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Xu. Wei

2010-01-01

An innovative fiber-optic sensor has been developed for low-thrust-level settled mass gauging with measurement uncertainty <0.5 percent over cryogenic propellant tank fill levels from 2 to 98 percent. The proposed sensor uses a single optical fiber to measure liquid level and liquid distribution of cryogenic propellants. Every point of the sensing fiber is a point sensor that not only distinguishes liquid and vapor, but also measures temperature. This sensor is able to determine the physical location of each point sensor with 1-mm spatial resolution. Acting as a continuous array of numerous liquid/vapor point sensors, the truly distributed optical sensing fiber can be installed in a propellant tank in the same manner as silicon diode point sensor stripes using only a single feedthrough to connect to an optical signal interrogation unit outside the tank. Either water or liquid nitrogen levels can be measured within 1-mm spatial resolution up to a distance of 70 meters from the optical interrogation unit. This liquid-level sensing technique was also compared to the pressure gauge measurement technique in water and liquid nitrogen contained in a vertical copper pipe with a reasonable degree of accuracy. It has been demonstrated that the sensor can measure liquid levels in multiple containers containing water or liquid nitrogen with one signal interrogation unit. The liquid levels measured by the multiple fiber sensors were consistent with those virtually measured by a ruler. The sensing performance of various optical fibers has been measured, and has demonstrated that they can survive after immersion at cryogenic temperatures. The fiber strength in liquid nitrogen has also been measured. Multiple water level tests were also conducted under various actual and theoretical vibration conditions, and demonstrated that the signal-to-noise ratio under these vibration conditions, insofar as it affects measurement accuracy, is manageable and robust enough for a wide variety of spacecraft applications. A simple solution has been developed to absorb optical energy at the termination of the optical sensor, thereby avoiding any feedback to the optical interrogation unit

Micro-patterning and characterization of PHEMA-co-PAM-based optical chemical sensors for lab-on-a-chip applications.

PubMed

Zhu, Haixin; Zhou, Xianfeng; Su, Fengyu; Tian, Yanqing; Ashili, Shashanka; Holl, Mark R; Meldrum, Deirdre R

2012-10-01

We report a novel method for wafer level, high throughput optical chemical sensor patterning, with precise control of the sensor volume and capability of producing arbitrary microscale patterns. Monomeric oxygen (O(2)) and pH optical probes were polymerized with 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) and acrylamide (AM) to form spin-coatable and further crosslinkable polymers. A micro-patterning method based on micro-fabrication techniques (photolithography, wet chemical process and reactive ion etch) was developed to miniaturize the sensor film onto glass substrates in arbitrary sizes and shapes. The sensitivity of fabricated micro-patterns was characterized under various oxygen concentrations and pH values. The process for spatially integration of two sensors (Oxygen and pH) on the same substrate surface was also developed, and preliminary fabrication and characterization results were presented. To the best of our knowledge, it is the first time that poly (2-hydroxylethyl methacrylate)-co-poly (acrylamide) (PHEMA-co-PAM)-based sensors had been patterned and integrated at the wafer level with micron scale precision control using microfabrication techniques. The developed methods can provide a feasible way to miniaturize and integrate the optical chemical sensor system and can be applied to any lab-on-a-chip system, especially the biological micro-systems requiring optical sensing of single or multiple analytes.

A copper-coated fiber Bragg grating current sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jia, Danping; Zhao, Limin; Lin, Yingwen

2005-01-01

Conventional current transformer (CT) is based on the principles of electric magnetic induction with copper wire windings and iron cores, it is widely used in power systems. But it emerges more weakness as the applied voltage and power capacity more and more increase. Over the past 20 years optical current sensors have received significant attention by a number of groups around the world as next generation high voltage measurement devices, with a view to replacing iron-corn current transformers in the electric power industry. In the opposite side of conventional current transformer, optical fiber current sensor provides a solution of the existed problems. It brings the significant advantages that they are non-conductive and lightweight, which can allow for much simpler insulation and mounting designs as the application voltage increase to1000kV or more to day. In addition, optical sensors do not exhibit hysteresis and provide a much large dynamic range and frequency response than iron-core CT. Optical fiber Bragg grating current sensor is the most potential important one among the optical current sensors, but its current transferred sensibility and the capability of anti-variance of temperature and stress still in a lower level. In this paper, a copper coated Bragg grating current sensor are described. The sensibility is improved significantly.

Temperature and pressure fiber-optic sensors applied to minimally invasive diagnostics and therapies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hamel, Caroline; Pinet, Éric

2006-02-01

We present how fiber-optic temperature or pressure sensors could be applied to minimally invasive diagnostics and therapies. For instance a miniature pressure sensor based on micro-optical mechanical systems (MOMS) could solve most of the problems associated with fluidic pressure transduction presently used for triggering purposes. These include intra-aortic balloon pumping (IABP) therapy and other applications requiring detection of fast and/or subtle fluid pressure variations such as for intracranial pressure monitoring or for urology diagnostics. As well, miniature temperature sensors permit minimally invasive direct temperature measurement in diagnostics or therapies requiring energy transfer to living tissues. The extremely small size of fiber-optic sensors that we have developed allows quick and precise in situ measurements exactly where the physical parameters need to be known. Furthermore, their intrinsic immunity to electromagnetic interference (EMI) allows for the safe use of EMI-generating therapeutic or diagnostic equipments without compromising the signal quality. With the trend of ambulatory health care and the increasing EMI noise found in modern hospitals, the use of multi-parameter fiber-optic sensors will improve constant patient monitoring without any concern about the effects of EMI disturbances. The advantages of miniature fiberoptic sensors will offer clinicians new monitoring tools that open the way for improved diagnostic accuracy and new therapeutic technologies.

POF-IMU sensor system: A fusion between inertial measurement units and POF sensors for low-cost and highly reliable systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Leal-Junior, Arnaldo G.; Vargas-Valencia, Laura; dos Santos, Wilian M.; Schneider, Felipe B. A.; Siqueira, Adriano A. G.; Pontes, Maria José; Frizera, Anselmo

2018-07-01

This paper presents a low cost and highly reliable system for angle measurement based on a sensor fusion between inertial and fiber optic sensors. The system consists of the sensor fusion through Kalman filter of two inertial measurement units (IMUs) and an intensity variation-based polymer optical fiber (POF) curvature sensor. In addition, the IMU was applied as a reference for a compensation technique of POF curvature sensor hysteresis. The proposed system was applied on the knee angle measurement of a lower limb exoskeleton in flexion/extension cycles and in gait analysis. Results show the accuracy of the system, where the Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) between the POF-IMU sensor system and the encoder was below 4° in the worst case and about 1° in the best case. Then, the POF-IMU sensor system was evaluated as a wearable sensor for knee joint angle assessment without the exoskeleton, where its suitability for this purpose was demonstrated. The results obtained in this paper pave the way for future applications of sensor fusion between electronic and fiber optic sensors in movement analysis.

Optical Fiber Chemical Sensor with Sol-Gel Derived Refractive Material as Transducer for High Temperature Gas Sensing in Clean Coal Technology

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Shiquan Tao

2006-12-31

The chemistry of sol-gel derived silica and refractive metal oxide has been systematically studied. Sol-gel processes have been developed for preparing porous silica and semiconductor metal oxide materials. Micelle/reversed micelle techniques have been developed for preparing nanometer sized semiconductor metal oxides and noble metal particles. Techniques for doping metal ions, metal oxides and nanosized metal particles into porous sol-gel material have also been developed. Optical properties of sol-gel derived materials in ambient and high temperature gases have been studied by using fiber optic spectroscopic techniques, such as fiber optic ultraviolet/visible absorption spectrometry, fiber optic near infrared absorption spectrometry and fibermore » optic fluorescence spectrometry. Fiber optic spectrometric techniques have been developed for investigating the optical properties of these sol-gel derived materials prepared as porous optical fibers or as coatings on the surface of silica optical fibers. Optical and electron microscopic techniques have been used to observe the microstructure, such as pore size, pore shape, sensing agent distribution, of sol-gel derived material, as well as the size and morphology of nanometer metal particle doped in sol-gel derived porous silica, the nature of coating of sol-gel derived materials on silica optical fiber surface. In addition, the chemical reactions of metal ion, nanostructured semiconductor metal oxides and nanometer sized metal particles with gas components at room temperature and high temperatures have also been investigated with fiber optic spectrometric methods. Three classes of fiber optic sensors have been developed based on the thorough investigation of sol-gel chemistry and sol-gel derived materials. The first group of fiber optic sensors uses porous silica optical fibers doped with metal ions or metal oxide as transducers for sensing trace NH{sub 3} and H{sub 2}S in high temperature gas samples. The second group of fiber optic sensors uses sol-gel derived porous silica materials doped with nanometer particles of noble metals in the form of fiber or coating for sensing trace H{sub 2}, NH{sub 3} and HCl in gas samples at for applications ambient temperature. The third classes of fiber optic sensors use sol-gel derived semiconductor metal oxide coating on the surface of silica optical fiber as transducers for selectively sensing H{sub 2}, CH{sub 4} and CO at high temperature. In addition, optical fiber temperature sensors use the fluorescence signal of rare-earth metal ions doped porous silica optical fiber or the optical absorption signal of thermochromic metal oxide materials coated on the surface of silica optical fibers have also been developed for monitoring gas temperature of corrosive gas. Based on the results obtained from this project, the principle of fiber optic sensor techniques for monitoring matrix gas components as well as trace components of coal gasification derived syngas has been established. Prototype sensors for sensing trace ammonia and hydrogen sulfide in gasification derived syngas have been built up in our laboratory and have been tested using gas samples with matrix gas composition similar to that of gasification derived fuel gas. Test results illustrated the feasibility of these sensors for applications in IGCC processes.« less

Intelligent fiber optic sensor for solution concentration examination

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Borecki, Michal; Kruszewski, Jerzy

2003-09-01

This paper presents the working principles of intelligent fiber-optic intensity sensor used for solution concentration examination. The sensor head is the ending of the large core polymer optical fiber. The head works on the reflection intensity basis. The reflected signal level depends on Fresnel reflection and reflection on suspended matter when the head is submersed in solution. The sensor head is mounted on a lift. For detection purposes the signal includes head submerging, submersion, emerging and emergence is measured. This way the viscosity turbidity and refraction coefficient has an effect on measured signal. The signal forthcoming from head is processed electrically in opto-electronic interface. Then it is feed to neural network. The novelty of presented sensor is implementation of neural network that works in generalization mode. The sensor resolution depends on opto-electronic signal conversion precision and neural network learning accuracy. Therefore, the number and quality of points used for learning process is very important. The example sensor application for examination of liquid soap concentration in water is presented in the paper.

Yttrium orthoaluminate nanoperovskite doped with Tm3+ ions as upconversion optical temperature sensor in the near-infrared region.

PubMed

Hernández-Rodriguez, M A; Lozano-Gorrín, A D; Lavín, V; Rodríguez-Mendoza, U R; Martín, I R

2017-10-30

The thermal sensing capability of the Tm 3+ -doped yttrium orthoaluminate nanoperovskite in the infrared range, synthetized by a sol-gel method, was studied. The temperature dependence of the infrared upconverted emission bands located at around 705 nm ( 3 F 2,3 → 3 H 6 ) and 800 nm ( 3 H 4 → 3 H 6 ) of YAP: Tm 3+ nanoperovskite under excitation at 1210 nm was analyzed from RT up to 425 K. Calibration of the optical sensor has been made using the fluorescence intensity ratio technique, showing a high sensitivity in the near-infrared compared to other trivalent rare-earth based optical sensors working in the same range. In addition, a second calibration procedure of the YAP: Tm 3+ optical sensor was performed by using the FIR technique on the emission band associated to the 3 H 4 → 3 H 6 transition in the physiological temperature range (293-333 K), showing a very high relative sensitivity compared with other rare-earth based optical temperature sensors working in the physiological range. Moreover, the main advantage compared with other optical sensors is that the excitation source and the upconverted emissions do not overlap, since they lie in different biological windows, thus allowing its potential use as an optical temperature probe in the near-infrared range for biological applications.

Novel Designs for Application Specific MEMS Pressure Sensors

PubMed Central

Fragiacomo, Giulio; Reck, Kasper; Lorenzen, Lasse; Thomsen, Erik V.

2010-01-01

In the framework of developing innovative microfabricated pressure sensors, we present here three designs based on different readout principles, each one tailored for a specific application. A touch mode capacitive pressure sensor with high sensitivity (14 pF/bar), low temperature dependence and high capacitive output signal (more than 100 pF) is depicted. An optical pressure sensor intrinsically immune to electromagnetic interference, with large pressure range (0–350 bar) and a sensitivity of 1 pm/bar is presented. Finally, a resonating wireless pressure sensor power source free with a sensitivity of 650 KHz/mmHg is described. These sensors will be related with their applications in harsh environment, distributed systems and medical environment, respectively. For many aspects, commercially available sensors, which in vast majority are piezoresistive, are not suited for the applications proposed. PMID:22163425

Various On-Chip Sensors with Microfluidics for Biological Applications

PubMed Central

Lee, Hun; Xu, Linfeng; Koh, Domin; Nyayapathi, Nikhila; Oh, Kwang W.

2014-01-01

In this paper, we review recent advances in on-chip sensors integrated with microfluidics for biological applications. Since the 1990s, much research has concentrated on developing a sensing system using optical phenomena such as surface plasmon resonance (SPR) and surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) to improve the sensitivity of the device. The sensing performance can be significantly enhanced with the use of microfluidic chips to provide effective liquid manipulation and greater flexibility. We describe an optical image sensor with a simpler platform for better performance over a larger field of view (FOV) and greater depth of field (DOF). As a new trend, we review consumer electronics such as smart phones, tablets, Google glasses, etc. which are being incorporated in point-of-care (POC) testing systems. In addition, we discuss in detail the current optical sensing system integrated with a microfluidic chip. PMID:25222033

Multispectral and polarimetric photodetection using a plasmonic metasurface

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pelzman, Charles; Cho, Sang-Yeon

2018-01-01

We present a metasurface-integrated Si 2-D CMOS sensor array for multispectral and polarimetric photodetection applications. The demonstrated sensor is based on the polarization selective extraordinary optical transmission from periodic subwavelength nanostructures, acting as artificial atoms, known as meta-atoms. The meta-atoms were created by patterning periodic rectangular apertures that support optical resonance at the designed spectral bands. By spatially separating meta-atom clusters with different lattice constants and orientations, the demonstrated metasurface can convert the polarization and spectral information of an optical input into a 2-D intensity pattern. As a proof-of-concept experiment, we measured the linear components of the Stokes parameters directly from captured images using a CMOS camera at four spectral bands. Compared to existing multispectral polarimetric sensors, the demonstrated metasurface-integrated CMOS system is compact and does not require any moving components, offering great potential for advanced photodetection applications.

Fiber Optic Control System integration for advanced aircraft. Electro-optic and sensor fabrication, integration, and environmental testing for flight control systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Seal, Daniel W.; Weaver, Thomas L.; Kessler, Bradley L.; Bedoya, Carlos A.; Mattes, Robert E.

1994-01-01

This report describes the design, development, and testing of passive fiber optic sensors and a multiplexing electro-optic architecture (EOA) for installation and flight test on a NASA-owned F-18 aircraft. This hardware was developed under the Fiber Optic Control Systems for Advanced Aircraft program, part of a multiyear NASA initiative to design, develop, and demonstrate through flight test 'fly-by-light' systems for application to advanced aircraft flight and propulsion control. This development included the design and production of 10 passive optical sensors and associated multiplexed EOA hardware based on wavelength division multiplexed (WDM) technology. A variety of sensor types (rotary position, linear position, temperature, and pressure) incorporating a broad range of sensor technologies (WDM analog, WDM digital, analog microbend, and fluorescent time rate of decay) were obtained from different manufacturers and functionally integrated with an independently designed EOA. The sensors were built for installation in a variety of aircraft locations, placing the sensors in a variety of harsh environments. The sensors and EOA were designed and built to have the resulting devices be as close as practical to a production system. The integrated system was delivered to NASA for flight testing on a NASA-owned F-18 aircraft. Development and integration testing of the system provided valuable information as to which sensor types were simplest to design and build for a military aircraft environment and which types were simplest to operate with a multiplexed EOA. Not all sensor types met the full range of performance and environmental requirements. EOA development problems provided information on directions to pursue in future fly-by-light flight control development programs. Lessons learned in the development of the EOA and sensor hardware are summarized.

Fiber Optic Control System integration for advanced aircraft. Electro-optic and sensor fabrication, integration, and environmental testing for flight control systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Seal, Daniel W.; Weaver, Thomas L.; Kessler, Bradley L.; Bedoya, Carlos A.; Mattes, Robert E.

1994-11-01

This report describes the design, development, and testing of passive fiber optic sensors and a multiplexing electro-optic architecture (EOA) for installation and flight test on a NASA-owned F-18 aircraft. This hardware was developed under the Fiber Optic Control Systems for Advanced Aircraft program, part of a multiyear NASA initiative to design, develop, and demonstrate through flight test 'fly-by-light' systems for application to advanced aircraft flight and propulsion control. This development included the design and production of 10 passive optical sensors and associated multiplexed EOA hardware based on wavelength division multiplexed (WDM) technology. A variety of sensor types (rotary position, linear position, temperature, and pressure) incorporating a broad range of sensor technologies (WDM analog, WDM digital, analog microbend, and fluorescent time rate of decay) were obtained from different manufacturers and functionally integrated with an independently designed EOA. The sensors were built for installation in a variety of aircraft locations, placing the sensors in a variety of harsh environments. The sensors and EOA were designed and built to have the resulting devices be as close as practical to a production system. The integrated system was delivered to NASA for flight testing on a NASA-owned F-18 aircraft. Development and integration testing of the system provided valuable information as to which sensor types were simplest to design and build for a military aircraft environment and which types were simplest to operate with a multiplexed EOA. Not all sensor types met the full range of performance and environmental requirements. EOA development problems provided information on directions to pursue in future fly-by-light flight control development programs. Lessons learned in the development of the EOA and sensor hardware are summarized.

Strain Wave Acquisition by a Fiber Optic Coherent Sensor for Impact Monitoring

PubMed Central

Sbarufatti, Claudio; Beligni, Alessio; Gilioli, Andrea; Ferrario, Maddalena; Mattarei, Marco; Martinelli, Mario; Giglio, Marco

2017-01-01

A novel fiber optic sensing technology for high frequency dynamics detection is proposed in this paper, specifically tailored for structural health monitoring applications based on strain wave analysis, for both passive impact identification and active Lamb wave monitoring. The sensing solution relies on a fiber optic-based interferometric architecture associated to an innovative coherent detection scheme, which retrieves in a completely passive way the high-frequency phase information of the received optical signal. The sensing fiber can be arranged into different layouts, depending on the requirement of the specific application, in order to enhance the sensor sensitivity while still ensuring a limited gauge length if punctual measures are required. For active Lamb wave monitoring, this results in a sensing fiber arranged in multiple loops glued on an aluminum thin panel in order to increase the phase signal only in correspondence to the sensing points of interest. Instead, for passive impact identification, the required sensitivity is guaranteed by simply exploiting a longer gauge length glued to the structure. The fiber optic coherent (FOC) sensor is exploited to detect the strain waves emitted by a piezoelectric transducer placed on the aluminum panel or generated by an impulse hammer, respectively. The FOC sensor measurements have been compared with both a numerical model based on Finite Elements and traditional piezoelectric sensors, confirming a good agreement between experimental and simulated results for both active and passive impact monitoring scenarios. PMID:28773154

In-flight fiber optic acoustic emission sensor (FAESense) system for the real time detection, localization, and classification of damage in composite aircraft structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mendoza, Edgar; Prohaska, John; Kempen, Connie; Esterkin, Yan; Sun, Sunjian

2013-05-01

Acoustic emission sensing is a leading structural health monitoring technique use for the early warning detection of structural damage associated with impacts, cracks, fracture, and delaminations in advanced materials. Current AE systems based on electronic PZT transducers suffer from various limitations that prevent its wide dynamic use in practical avionics and aerospace applications where weight, size and power are critical for operation. This paper describes progress towards the development of a wireless in-flight distributed fiber optic acoustic emission monitoring system (FAESense™) suitable for the onboard-unattended detection, localization, and classification of damage in avionics and aerospace structures. Fiber optic AE sensors offer significant advantages over its counterpart electronic AE sensors by using a high-density array of micron-size AE transducers distributed and multiplex over long lengths of a standard single mode optical fiber. Immediate SHM applications are found in commercial and military aircraft, helicopters, spacecraft, wind mil turbine blades, and in next generation weapon systems, as well as in the petrochemical and aerospace industries, civil structures, power utilities, and a wide spectrum of other applications.

Research of detection depth for graphene-based optical sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Yong; Sun, Jialve; Liu, Lu; Zhu, Siwei; Yuan, Xiaocong

2018-03-01

Graphene-based optical sensors have been developed for research into the biological intercellular refractive index (RI) because they offer greater detection depths than those provided by the surface plasmon resonance technique. In this Letter, we propose an experimental approach for measurement of the detection depth in a graphene-based optical sensor system that uses transparent polydimethylsiloxane layers with different thicknesses. The experimental results show that detection depths of 2.5 μm and 3 μm can be achieved at wavelengths of 532 nm and 633 nm, respectively. These results prove that graphene-based optical sensors can realize long-range RI detection and are thus promising for use as tools in the biological cell detection field. Additionally, we analyze the factors that influence the detection depth and provide a feasible approach for detection depth control based on adjustment of the wavelength and the angle of incidence. We believe that this approach will be useful in RI tomography applications.

Fatigue Damage Monitoring of a Composite Step Lap Joint Using Distributed Optical Fibre Sensors

PubMed Central

Wong, Leslie; Chowdhury, Nabil; Wang, John; Chiu, Wing Kong; Kodikara, Jayantha

2016-01-01

Over the past few decades, there has been a considerable interest in the use of distributed optical fibre sensors (DOFS) for structural health monitoring of composite structures. In aerospace-related work, health monitoring of the adhesive joints of composites has become more significant, as they can suffer from cracking and delamination, which can have a significant impact on the integrity of the joint. In this paper, a swept-wavelength interferometry (SWI) based DOFS technique is used to monitor the fatigue in a flush step lap joint composite structure. The presented results will show the potential application of distributed optical fibre sensor for damage detection, as well as monitoring the fatigue crack growth along the bondline of a step lap joint composite structure. The results confirmed that a distributed optical fibre sensor is able to enhance the detection of localised damage in a structure. PMID:28773496

Optical sensor for fluoride determination in tea sample based on evanescent-wave interaction and fiber-optic integration.

PubMed

Xiong, Yan; Wu, Jiayi; Wang, Qing; Xu, Jing; Fang, Shenwen; Chen, Jie; Duan, Ming

2017-11-01

In this work, a miniaturized optical sensor was developed for fluoride determination in tea samples to evaluate their specific risks of fluorosis for public health based on evanescent-wave interaction. The sensor design was integrated on the optical fiber by utilizing the evanescent wave produced on the fiber surface to react with sensing reagents. According to the absorption change at 575nm, fluoride could be determined by colorimetric method and evaluated by Beer's law. With improved performances of small detection volume (1.2μL), fast analysis (0.41min), wide linear range (0.01-1.4mgL -1 ), low detection limit (3.5μgL -1 , 3σ) and excellent repeatability (2.34%), the sensor has been applied to fluoride determination in six different tea samples. Conventional spectrophotometry and ion chromatography were employed to validate the sensor's accuracy and potential application. Furthermore, this sensor fabrication provided a miniaturized colorimetric detection platform for other hazardous species monitoring based on evanescent wave interaction. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Influence of fiber bending on wavelength demodulation of fiber-optic Fabry-Perot interferometric sensors.

PubMed

Liu, Guigen; Sheng, Qiwen; Hou, Weilin; Han, Ming

2016-11-14

In practical applications of fiber optic sensors based on Fabry-Perot interferometers (FPIs), the lead-in optical fiber often experiences dynamic or static bending due to environmental perturbations or limited installation space. Bending introduces wavelength-dependent losses to the sensors, which can cause erroneous readings for sensors based on wavelength demodulation interrogation. Here, we investigate the bending-induced wavelength shift (BIWS) to sensors based on FPIs. Partially explicit expressions of BIWSs for the reflection fringe peaks and valleys have been derived for sensors based on low-finesse FPI. The theoretical model predicts these findings: 1) provided that a fringe peak experiences the same modulation slope by bending losses with a fringe valley, BIWSs for the peak and valley have opposite signs and the BIWS for the valley has a smaller absolute value; 2) BIWS is a linear function of the length of the bending section; 3) a FPI with higher visibility and longer optical path length is more resistant to the influence of bending. Experiments have been carried out and the results agree well with the theoretical predictions.

An optical sensor for detecting the contact location of a gas-liquid interface on a body.

PubMed

Belden, Jesse; Jandron, Michael

2014-08-01

An optical sensor for detecting the dynamic contact location of a gas-liquid interface along the length of a body is described. The sensor is developed in the context of applications to supercavitating bodies requiring measurement of the dynamic cavity contact location; however, the sensing method is extendable to other applications as well. The optical principle of total internal reflection is exploited to detect changes in refractive index of the medium contacting the body at discrete locations along its length. The derived theoretical operation of the sensor predicts a signal attenuation of 18 dB when a sensed location changes from air-contacting to water-contacting. Theory also shows that spatial resolution (d) scales linearly with sensor length (L(s)) and a resolution of 0.01L(s) can be achieved. A prototype sensor is constructed from simple components and response characteristics are quantified for different ambient light conditions as well as partial wetting states. Three methods of sensor calibration are described and a signal processing framework is developed that allows for robust detection of the gas-liquid contact location. In a tank draining experiment, the prototype sensor resolves the water level with accuracy limited only by the spatial resolution, which is constrained by the experimental setup. A more representative experiment is performed in which the prototype sensor accurately measures the dynamic contact location of a gas cavity on a water tunnel wall.

Design and research of sun sensor based on technology of optical fiber

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Ye; Zhou, Wang; Li, Dan

2010-08-01

A kind of sun sensor is designed based on the optical fiber. This project consists of three parts: optical head, photoelectric sensor and signal processing unit. The innovation of this design lies in the improvement of traditional sun sensor, where multi-fibers, used as a leader, are symmetrically distributed on the surface of a spacecraft. To determine the attitude of a spacecraft, the sun sensor should measure the direction of the sun. Because the fiber length can be adjusted according to the fact, photoelectric sensor can be placed deeply inside a spacecraft to protect the photoelectric sensor against the damage by the high-energy particles from outer space. The processing unit calculates the difference value of sun energy imported by each pair of opposite optical fiber so as to obtain the angle and the orientation between the spacecraft and the sun. This sun sensor can suit multi-field of view, both small and large. It improves the accuracy of small field of view and increases the precision of locating a spacecraft. This paper briefly introduces the design of processing unit. This sun sensor is applicable to detect the attitude of a spacecraft. In addition, it can also be used in solar tracking system of PV technology.

Microfabrication and Applications of Opto-Microfluidic Sensors

PubMed Central

Zhang, Daiying; Men, Liqiu; Chen, Qiying

2011-01-01

A review of research activities on opto-microfluidic sensors carried out by the research groups in Canada is presented. After a brief introduction of this exciting research field, detailed discussion is focused on different techniques for the fabrication of opto-microfluidic sensors, and various applications of these devices for bioanalysis, chemical detection, and optical measurement. Our current research on femtosecond laser microfabrication of optofluidic devices is introduced and some experimental results are elaborated. The research on opto-microfluidics provides highly sensitive opto-microfluidic sensors for practical applications with significant advantages of portability, efficiency, sensitivity, versatility, and low cost. PMID:22163904

A Miniature Fiber-Optic Sensor for High-Resolution and High-Speed Temperature Sensing in Ocean Environment

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-11-05

the SMF is superior when it comes to remote sensing in far and deep ocean. As an initial test , the real-time temperature structure within the water...4 ℃. The high resolution guarantees the visualization of subtle variation in the local water. To test the response time of the proposed sensor, the... Honey , "Optical trubulence in the sea," in Underwater Photo-optical Instrumentation Applications SPIE, 49-55 (1972). [6] J. D. Nash, D. R. Caldwell, M

Priority design parameters of industrialized optical fiber sensors in civil engineering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Huaping; Jiang, Lizhong; Xiang, Ping

2018-03-01

Considering the mechanical effects and the different paths for transferring deformation, optical fiber sensors commonly used in civil engineering have been systematically classified. Based on the strain transfer theory, the relationship between the strain transfer coefficient and allowable testing error is established. The proposed relationship is regarded as the optimal control equation to obtain the optimal value of sensors that satisfy the requirement of measurement precision. Furthermore, specific optimization design methods and priority design parameters of the classified sensors are presented. This research indicates that (1) strain transfer theory-based optimization design method is much suitable for the sensor that depends on the interfacial shear stress to transfer the deformation; (2) the priority design parameters are bonded (sensing) length, interfacial bonded strength, elastic modulus and radius of protective layer and thickness of adhesive layer; (3) the optimization design of sensors with two anchor pieces at two ends is independent of strain transfer theory as the strain transfer coefficient can be conveniently calibrated by test, and this kind of sensors has no obvious priority design parameters. Improved calibration test is put forward to enhance the accuracy of the calibration coefficient of end-expanding sensors. By considering the practical state of sensors and the testing accuracy, comprehensive and systematic analyses on optical fiber sensors are provided from the perspective of mechanical actions, which could scientifically instruct the application design and calibration test of industrialized optical fiber sensors.

Adaptive optics; Proceedings of the Meeting, Arlington, VA, April 10, 11, 1985

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ludman, J. E.

Papers are presented on the directed energy program for ballistic missile defense, a self-referencing wavefront interferometer for laser sources, the effects of mirror grating distortions on diffraction spots at wavefront sensors, and the optical design of an all-reflecting, high-resolution camera for active-optics on ground-based telescopes. Also considered are transverse coherence length observations, time dependent statistics of upper atmosphere optical turbulence, high altitude acoustic soundings, and the Cramer-Rao lower bound on wavefront sensor error. Other topics include wavefront reconstruction from noisy slope or difference data using the discrete Fourier transform, acoustooptic adaptive signal processing, the recording of phase deformations on a PLZT wafer for holographic and spatial light modulator applications, and an optical phase reconstructor using a multiplier-accumulator approach. Papers are also presented on an integrated optics wavefront measurement sensor, a new optical preprocessor for automatic vision systems, a model for predicting infrared atmospheric emission fluctuations, and optical logic gates and flip-flops based on polarization-bistable semiconductor lasers.

In plane optical sensor based on organic electronic devices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Koetse, Marc; Rensing, Peter; van Heck, Gert; Sharpe, Ruben; Allard, Bart; Wieringa, Fokko; Kruijt, Peter; Meulendijks, Nicole; Jansen, Henk; Schoo, Herman

2008-08-01

Sensors based on organic electronic devices are emerging in a wide range of application areas. Here we present a sensor platform using organic light emitting diodes (OLED) and organic photodiodes (OPD) as active components. By means of lamination and interconnection technology the functional foils with OLED and OPD arrays form an in-plane optical sensor platform (IPOS). This platform can be extended with a wireless data and signal processing unit yielding a sensor node. The focus of our research is to engage the node in a healthcare application, in which a bandage is able to monitor the vital signs of a person, a so-called Smart Bandage. One of the principles that is described here is based on measuring the absorption modulation of blood volume induced by the pulse (photoplethysmography). The information from such a bandage could be used to monitor wound healing by measuring the perfusion in the skin. The OLED and OPD devices are manufactured on separate foils and glass substrates by means of printing and coating technologies. Furthermore, the modular approach allows for the application of the optical sensing unit in a variety of other fields including chemical sensing. This, ultimately enables the measurement of a large variety of physiological parameters using the same bandage and the same basic sensor architecture. Here we discuss the build-up of our device in general terms. Specific characteristics of the used OLEDs and OPDs are shown and finally we demonstrate the functionality by simultaneously recorded photoplethysmograms of our device and a clinical pulseoximeter.

Chiral Block Copolymer Structures for Metamaterial Applications

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-01-27

photonic crystal simulations. Band diagrams for the SG and...texture could provide organic amorphous photonic crystals (APCs) with a visible‐wavelength photonic isotropic (angle – independent) bandgap. We...our works on chiral photonic structures. Dr. Urbas is interested in metamaterials for optical applications in optical limiting (sensor

Process development for waveguide chemical sensors with integrated polymeric sensitive layers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Amberkar, Raghu; Gao, Zhan; Park, Jongwon; Henthorn, David B.; Kim, Chang-Soo

2008-02-01

Due to the proper optical property and flexibility in the process development, an epoxy-based, high-aspect ratio photoresist SU-8 is now attracting attention in optical sensing applications. Manipulation of the surface properties of SU-8 waveguides is critical to attach functional films such as chemically-sensitive layers. We describe a new integration process to immobilize fluorescence molecules on SU-8 waveguide surface for application to intensity-based optical chemical sensors. We use two polymers for this application. Spin-on, hydrophobic, photopatternable silicone is a convenient material to contain fluorophore molecules and to pattern a photolithographically defined thin layer on the surface of SU-8. We use fumed silica powders as an additive to uniformly disperse the fluorophores in the silicone precursor. In general, additional processes are not critically required to promote the adhesion between the SU-8 and silicone. The other material is polyethylene glycol diacrylate (PEGDA). Recently we demonstrated a novel photografting method to modify the surface of SU-8 using a surface bound initiator to control its wettability. The activated surface is then coated with a monomer precursor solution. Polymerization follows when the sample is exposed to UV irradiation, resulting in a grafted PEGDA layer incorporating fluorophores within the hydrogel matrix. Since this method is based the UV-based photografting reaction, it is possible to grow off photolithographically defined hydrogel patterns on the waveguide structures. The resulting films will be viable integrated components in optical bioanalytical sensors. This is a promising technique for integrated chemical sensors both for planar type waveguide and vertical type waveguide chemical sensors.

Static and cyclic performance evaluation of sensors for human interface pressure measurement.

PubMed

Dabling, Jeffrey G; Filatov, Anton; Wheeler, Jason W

2012-01-01

Researchers and clinicians often desire to monitor pressure distributions on soft tissues at interfaces to mechanical devices such as prosthetics, orthotics or shoes. The most common type of sensor used for this type of applications is a Force Sensitive Resistor (FSR) as these are convenient to use and inexpensive. Several other types of sensors exist that may have superior sensing performance but are less ubiquitous or more expensive, such as optical or capacitive sensors. We tested five sensors (two FSRs, one optical, one capacitive and one fluid pressure) in a static drift and cyclic loading configuration. The results show that relative to the important performance characteristics for soft tissue pressure monitoring (i.e. hysteresis, drift), many of the sensors tested have significant limitations. The FSRs exhibited hysteresis, drift and loss of sensitivity under cyclic loading. The capacitive sensor had substantial drift. The optical sensor had some hysteresis and temperature-related drift. The fluid pressure sensor performed well in these tests but is not as flat as the other sensors and is not commercially available. Researchers and clinicians should carefully consider the convenience and performance trade-offs when choosing a sensor for soft-tissue pressure monitoring.

Detection of stain formation on teeth by oral antiseptic solution using fiber optic displacement sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rahman, H. A.; Rahim, H. R. A.; Harun, S. W.; Yasin, M.; Apsari, R.; Ahmad, H.; Wan Abas, W. A. B.

2013-02-01

The application of a simple intensity modulated fiber optic displacement sensor for the detection of stain formation on human teeth is demonstrated. The proposed sensor uses a concentric type bundled plastic optical fiber (POF) as a probe in conjunction with the surfaces of five human teeth as the reflecting targets. Prior to the experiment, the stains were produced extrinsically by soaking the teeth in different concentrations of oral antiseptic solution containing hexetidine. The concentration of the oral antiseptic solution is measured in volume%. For a concentration change from 0% to 80%, the peak voltage decreases exponentially from 1.15 mV to 0.41 mV with a measured resolution of 0.48% and 1.75% for concentration ranges of 0-40% and 40-80%, respectively. The correlation between the detector output and variation in the color of human tooth surface has successfully been examined. Simple in design and low in cost, this sensor can detect color changes due to hexetidine-induced stain on a tooth surface in a fast and convenient way. Thus, this sensor will be very promising in esthetic dentistry, dental color matching techniques, chemical and biomedical applications.

Experimental investigation of RC beams using BOTDA(R)-FRP-OF

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Zhi; He, Jianping; Huang, Ying; Ou, Jinping

2008-04-01

Brillouin based fiber optic sensing turns to be a promising technology for Structural Health Monitoring (SHM). However, the bare optical fiber is too fragile to act as a practical sensor, so high durability and large range (large strain) Brillouin distributed sensors are in great needs in field applications. For this reason, high durable and large range optical fiber Brillouin Optical Time Domain Analysis (Reflectometer) sensors packaged by Fiber Reinforcement Polymer (FRP), named BOTDA(R)-FRP-OF, have been studied and developed. Besides, in order to study the large strain, crack and slip between the rebar and concrete in reinforced concrete (RC) beams using BOTDR(A) technique, five RC Beams installed with BOTDA(R)-FRP-OF sensors have been set up. And the damage characteristics of the RC beams were investigated by comparing the strain measured by the BOTDA(R)-FRP-OF sensors and the strain from traditional electric strain gauges and Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG) sensors, respectively. The test results show that the BOTDA(R)-FRP-OF sensor can effectively detect the damage (including crack and slip) characteristic of RC beam, and it is suitable for the long-term structural health monitoring on concrete structures such as bridge, big dam and so on.

Nanostructured conjugated polymers in chemical sensors: synthesis, properties and applications.

PubMed

Correa, D S; Medeiros, E S; Oliveira, J E; Paterno, L G; Mattoso, Luiz C

2014-09-01

Conjugated polymers are organic materials endowed with a π-electron conjugation along the polymer backbone that present appealing electrical and optical properties for technological applications. By using conjugated polymeric materials in the nanoscale, such properties can be further enhanced. In addition, the use of nanostructured materials makes possible miniaturize devices at the micro/nano scale. The applications of conjugated nanostructured polymers include sensors, actuators, flexible displays, discrete electronic devices, and smart fabric, to name a few. In particular, the use of conjugated polymers in chemical and biological sensors is made feasible owning to their sensitivity to the physicochemical conditions of its surrounding environment, such as chemical composition, pH, dielectric constant, humidity or even temperature. Subtle changes in these conditions bring about variations on the electrical (resistivity and capacitance), optical (absorptivity, luminescence, etc.), and mechanical properties of the conjugated polymer, which can be precisely measured by different experimental methods and ultimately associated with a specific analyte and its concentration. The present review article highlights the main features of conjugated polymers that make them suitable for chemical sensors. An especial emphasis is given to nanostructured sensors systems, which present high sensitivity and selectivity, and find application in beverage and food quality control, pharmaceutical industries, medical diagnosis, environmental monitoring, and homeland security, and other applications as discussed throughout this review.

Multimode-singlemode-multimode fiber sensor for alcohol sensing application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rofi'ah, Iftihatur; Hatta, A. M.; Sekartedjo, Sekartedjo

2016-11-01

Alcohol is volatile and flammable liquid which is soluble substances both on polar and non polar substances that has been used in some industrial sectors. Alcohol detection method now widely used one of them is the optical fiber sensor. In this paper used fiber optic sensor based on Multimode-Single-mode-Multimode (MSM) to detect alcohol solution at a concentration range of 0-3%. The working principle of sensor utilizes the modal interference between the core modes and the cladding modes, thus make the sensor sensitive to environmental changes. The result showed that characteristic of the sensor not affect the length of the single-mode fiber (SMF). We obtain that the sensor with a length of 5 mm of single-mode can sensing the alcohol with a sensitivity of 0.107 dB/v%.

Diaphragm-Free Fiber-Optic Fabry-Perot Interferometric Gas Pressure Sensor for High Temperature Application.

PubMed

Liang, Hao; Jia, Pinggang; Liu, Jia; Fang, Guocheng; Li, Zhe; Hong, Yingping; Liang, Ting; Xiong, Jijun

2018-03-28

A diaphragm-free fiber-optic Fabry-Perot (FP) interferometric gas pressure sensor is designed and experimentally verified in this paper. The FP cavity was fabricated by inserting a well-cut fiber Bragg grating (FBG) and hollow silica tube (HST) from both sides into a silica casing. The FP cavity length between the ends of the SMF and HST changes with the gas density. Using temperature decoupling method to improve the accuracy of the pressure sensor in high temperature environments. An experimental system for measuring the pressure under different temperatures was established to verify the performance of the sensor. The pressure sensitivity of the FP gas pressure sensor is 4.28 nm/MPa with a high linear pressure response over the range of 0.1-0.7 MPa, and the temperature sensitivity is 14.8 pm/°C under the range of 20-800 °C. The sensor has less than 1.5% non-linearity at different temperatures by using temperature decoupling method. The simple fabrication and low-cost will help sensor to maintain the excellent features required by pressure measurement in high temperature applications.

Integrated Mach-Zehnder interferometer on the end facet of multicore fiber for refractive index sensing application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qi, Yanwen; Zhang, Siyao; Feng, Shengfei; Wang, Xinke; Sun, Wenfeng; Ye, Jiasheng; Han, Peng; Zhang, Yan

2018-01-01

A sensitive, real-time seven core optical fiber based Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) sensor for liquid refractive index detection is proposed, fabricated and characterized. A trapezoid body with an inverted wedge shape groove in the center is used to design the MZI. The two ends of the trapezoid body play the roles of micro-prisms, and the middle parts of the trapezoid body and the groove play the roles of reference and sensing arms. A series of performance tests were carried out by immersing the sensor in different kinds of solutions to verify the universal applicability of the sensor. The MZI sensor is as small as only 43 μm × 8 μm, and at the same time with sensitivity of 1616 nm/RIU. Nominally, we realized a completely integrated optical sensing system. And, this system actually could be the building block of more powerful integrated chemical sensing chip for health, security and industry application.

Superconductivity Devices: Commercial Use of Space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Haertling, Gene (Principal Investigator); Furman, Eugene; Li, Guang

1996-01-01

The work described in this report covers various aspects of the Rainbow solid-state actuator and sensor technologies. It is presented in five parts dealing with sensor applications, nonlinear properties, stress-optic and electrooptic properties, stacks and arrays, and publications. The Rainbow actuator technology is a relatively new materials development which had its inception in 1992. It involves a new processing technique for preparing pre-stressed, high lead containing piezoelectric and electrostrictive ceramic materials. Ceramics fabricated by this method produce bending-mode actuator devices which possess several times more displacement and load bearing capacity than present-day benders. Since they can also be used in sensor applications, Rainbows are part of the family of materials known as smart ceramics. During this period, PLZT Rainbow ceramics were characterized with respect to their piezoelectric properties for potential use in stress sensor applications. Studies of the nonlinear and stress-optic/electrooptic birefringent properties were also initiated during this period. Various means for increasing the utility of stress-enhanced Rainbow actuators are presently under investigation.

Selective and reversible ammonia gas detection with nanoporous film functionalized silicon photonic micro-ring resonator.

PubMed

Yebo, Nebiyu A; Sree, Sreeprasanth Pulinthanathu; Levrau, Elisabeth; Detavernier, Christophe; Hens, Zeger; Martens, Johan A; Baets, Roel

2012-05-21

Portable, low cost and real-time gas sensors have a considerable potential in various biomedical and industrial applications. For such applications, nano-photonic gas sensors based on standard silicon fabrication technology offer attractive opportunities. Deposition of high surface area nano-porous coatings on silicon photonic sensors is a means to achieve selective, highly sensitive and multiplexed gas detection on an optical chip. Here we demonstrate selective and reversible ammonia gas detection with functionalized silicon-on-insulator optical micro-ring resonators. The micro-ring resonators are coated with acidic nano-porous aluminosilicate films for specific ammonia sensing, which results in a reversible response to NH(3)with selectivity relative to CO(2). The ammonia detection limit is estimated at about 5 ppm. The detectors reach a steady response to NH(3) within 30 and return to their base level within 60 to 90 seconds. The work opens perspectives on development of nano-photonic sensors for real-time, non-invasive, low cost and light weight biomedical and industrial sensing applications.

Detection of wavelengths in the visible range using fiber optic sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Díaz, Leonardo; Morales, Yailteh; Mattos, Lorenzo; Torres, Cesar O.

2013-11-01

This paper shows the design and implementation of a fiber optic sensor for detecting and identifying wavelengths in the visible range. The system consists of a diffuse optical fiber, a conventional laser diode 650nm, 2.5mW of power, an ambient light sensor LX1972, a PIC 18F2550 and LCD screen for viewing. The principle used in the detection of the lambda is based on specular reflection and absorption. The optoelectronic device designed and built used the absorption and reflection properties of the material under study, having as active optical medium a bifurcated optical fiber, which is optically coupled to an ambient light sensor, which makes the conversion of light signals to electricas, procedure performed by a microcontroller, which acquires and processes the signal. To verify correct operation of the assembly were utilized the color cards of sewing thread and nail polish as samples for analysis. This optoelectronic device can be used in many applications such as quality control of industrial processes, classification of corks or bottle caps, color quality of textiles, sugar solutions, polymers and food among others.

Development of a Meso-Scale Fiberoptic Rotation Sensor for a Torsion Actuator.

PubMed

Sheng, Jun; Desai, Jaydev P

2018-01-01

This paper presents the development of a meso-scale fiberoptic rotation sensor for a shape memory alloy (SMA) torsion actuator for neurosurgical applications. Within the sensor, a rotary head with a reflecting surface is capable of modulating the light intensity collected by optical fibers when the rotary head is coupled to the torsion actuator. The mechanism of light intensity modulation is modeled, followed by experimental model verification. Meanwhile, working performances for different rotary head designs, optical fibers, and fabrication materials are compared. After the calibration of the fiberoptic rotation sensor, the sensor is capable of precisely measuring rotary motion and controlling the SMA torsion actuator with feedback control.

Optical sensors based on plastic fibers.

PubMed

Bilro, Lúcia; Alberto, Nélia; Pinto, João L; Nogueira, Rogério

2012-01-01

The recent advances of polymer technology allowed the introduction of plastic optical fiber in sensor design. The advantages of optical metrology with plastic optical fiber have attracted the attention of the scientific community, as they allow the development of low-cost or cost competitive systems compared with conventional technologies. In this paper, the current state of the art of plastic optical fiber technology will be reviewed, namely its main characteristics and sensing advantages. Several measurement techniques will be described, with a strong focus on interrogation approaches based on intensity variation in transmission and reflection. The potential applications involving structural health monitoring, medicine, environment and the biological and chemical area are also presented.

Optoelectronic Components and Integration Devices: From Concepts to Applications

DTIC Science & Technology

2003-04-01

internet where the optical fiber is coming closer and closer to the customer. In the following an overview on the state of the art of ultra- fast photonic...results. Fig. 19 shows the circuit diagramme of such an E-field sensor for EMC applications. The sensor head consists of a dipole antenna. The output

Diaphragm size and sensitivity for fiber optic pressure sensors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

He, Gang; Cuomo, Frank W.; Zuckerwar, Allan J.

1991-01-01

A mechanism which leads to a significant increase in sensitivity and linear operating range in reflective type fiber optic pressure transducers with minute active dimensions is studied. A general theoretical formalism is presented which is in good agreement with the experimental data. These results are found useful in the development of small pressure sensors used in turbulent boundary layer studies and other applications.

Recent Electrochemical and Optical Sensors in Flow-Based Analysis

PubMed Central

Chailapakul, Orawon; Ngamukot, Passapol; Yoosamran, Alongkorn; Siangproh, Weena; Wangfuengkanagul, Nattakarn

2006-01-01

Some recent analytical sensors based on electrochemical and optical detection coupled with different flow techniques have been chosen in this overview. A brief description of fundamental concepts and applications of each flow technique, such as flow injection analysis (FIA), sequential injection analysis (SIA), all injection analysis (AIA), batch injection analysis (BIA), multicommutated FIA (MCFIA), multisyringe FIA (MSFIA), and multipumped FIA (MPFIA) were reviewed.

Germanium Requirements for National Defense,

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-07-01

work in this area involves development of hard exterior coating materials that will protect Ge windows but not adversely affect their optical...advanced electronic materials, is used in semiconductor devices, fiber optic systems, and infrared sensors for ships, aircraft, missiles, tanks and anti -tank...infrared sensors for ships, aircraft, missiles, tanks and anti -tank units. Because of its importance in these applications, germanium was added to the

CAOS-CMOS camera.

PubMed

Riza, Nabeel A; La Torre, Juan Pablo; Amin, M Junaid

2016-06-13

Proposed and experimentally demonstrated is the CAOS-CMOS camera design that combines the coded access optical sensor (CAOS) imager platform with the CMOS multi-pixel optical sensor. The unique CAOS-CMOS camera engages the classic CMOS sensor light staring mode with the time-frequency-space agile pixel CAOS imager mode within one programmable optical unit to realize a high dynamic range imager for extreme light contrast conditions. The experimentally demonstrated CAOS-CMOS camera is built using a digital micromirror device, a silicon point-photo-detector with a variable gain amplifier, and a silicon CMOS sensor with a maximum rated 51.3 dB dynamic range. White light imaging of three different brightness simultaneously viewed targets, that is not possible by the CMOS sensor, is achieved by the CAOS-CMOS camera demonstrating an 82.06 dB dynamic range. Applications for the camera include industrial machine vision, welding, laser analysis, automotive, night vision, surveillance and multispectral military systems.

BPM analysis of all-optical fiber interferometric sensor based on a U-shape microcavity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Hongbin; Yuan, Lei; Wang, Sumei; Zhao, Longjiang; Cao, Zhitao

2014-02-01

Reflectivity spectrum of beam propagation method (BPM), for the first time to the best of our knowledge, is realized and utilized to model all-optical fiber interferometric sensor formed by a U-shape microcavity embedded in a single mode optical fiber and illustrate the principle of sensor structures varied by the length and the depth of U-shape microcavity. BPM analysis gives a constructive guideline to get a high interferometric fringe visibility which is most important for sensing application. The simulated results are completely in agreement with the interferometric sensor principle of Fabry-Perot interferometer (FPI) theory. With the conclusion of FPI sensor, refractive index (RI) sensitivity and temperature sensitivity are then simulated and obtained as 1049+/-5.2nm/RIU (refractive index unit) within RI range of solutions and 1.04+/-0.03pm/°C respectively.

Performance of the fiber-optic low-coherent ground settlement sensor: From lab to field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guo, Jingjing; Tan, Yanbin; Peng, Li; Chen, Jisong; Wei, Chuanjun; Zhang, Pinglei; Zhang, Tianhang; Alrabeei, Salah; Zhang, Zhe; Sun, Changsen

2018-04-01

A fiber-optic low-coherent interferometry sensor was developed to measure the ground settlement (GS) in an accuracy of the micrometer. The sensor combined optical techniques with liquid-contained chambers that were hydraulically connected together at the bottom by using a water-filled tube. The liquid surface inside each chamber was at the same level initially. The optical interferometry was employed to read out the liquid level changes, which following the GS happened at the place where the chamber was put on and, thereby, the GS information was calculated. The laboratory effort had demonstrated its potential in the practical application. Here, the denoising algorithms on the measurement signal were carried out based on the specific environment to ensure the accuracy and stability of the system in field applications. After that, we extended this technique to the high-speed railway. The 5-days continuous measurement proved that the designed system could be applied to monitor the GS of the high-speed railway piers and approached an accuracy of ±70 μm in the field situation with a reference compensation sensor. So the performance of the sensor was suitable to the GS monitoring problem in the high-speed railway. There, the difficulties were to meet the monitoring requirement of both a large span in space and its quite tiny and slow changes.

Micromachined fiber optic Fabry-Perot underwater acoustic probe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Fuyin; Shao, Zhengzheng; Hu, Zhengliang; Luo, Hong; Xie, Jiehui; Hu, Yongming

2014-08-01

One of the most important branches in the development trend of the traditional fiber optic physical sensor is the miniaturization of sensor structure. Miniature fiber optic sensor can realize point measurement, and then to develop sensor networks to achieve quasi-distributed or distributed sensing as well as line measurement to area monitoring, which will greatly extend the application area of fiber optic sensors. The development of MEMS technology brings a light path to address the problems brought by the procedure of sensor miniaturization. Sensors manufactured by MEMS technology possess the advantages of small volume, light weight, easy fabricated and low cost. In this paper, a fiber optic extrinsic Fabry-Perot interferometric underwater acoustic probe utilizing micromachined diaphragm collaborated with fiber optic technology and MEMS technology has been designed and implemented to actualize underwater acoustic sensing. Diaphragm with central embossment, where the embossment is used to anti-hydrostatic pressure which would largely deflect the diaphragm that induce interferometric fringe fading, has been made by double-sided etching of silicon on insulator. By bonding the acoustic-sensitive diaphragm as well as a cleaved fiber end in ferrule with an outer sleeve, an extrinsic Fabry-Perot interferometer has been constructed. The sensor has been interrogated by quadrature-point control method and tested in field-stable acoustic standing wave tube. Results have been shown that the recovered signal detected by the sensor coincided well with the corresponding transmitted signal and the sensitivity response was flat in frequency range from 10 Hz to 2kHz with the value about -154.6 dB re. 1/μPa. It has been manifest that the designed sensor could be used as an underwater acoustic probe.

In-situ growth of AuNPs on WS2@U-bent optical fiber for evanescent wave absorption sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Suzhen; Zhao, Yuefeng; Zhang, Chao; Jiang, Shouzhen; Yang, Cheng; Xiu, Xianwu; Li, Chonghui; Li, Zhen; Zhao, Xiaofei; Man, Baoyuan

2018-05-01

The sensitivity of the evanescent wave absorption sensor is always a hot topic which has been attracted researchers' discussion. It is still a challenge for developing the effective sensor to sensitively detect some biochemical molecules solution in a simple and low-cost way. In this paper, an evanescent wave absorption (EWA) sensor has been presented based on the U-bent multimode fiber coated with tungsten disulfide (WS2) film and in-situ growth of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) for the detection of ethanol solution and sodium chloride (NaCl) solution. Benefitted from the effective light coupling produced between U-bent probe and AuNPs, we attained the optimal size of the AuNPs by changing the reaction time between WS2 and tetrachloroauric acid (HAuCl4). With the AuNPs/WS2@U-bent optical fiber, we discussed the behaviors of EWA sensor, such as sensitivity, reproducibility, fast response-recovery time and stability. The sensitivity (△A/△C) of the proposed AuNPs/WS2@U-bent optical fiber EWA sensor is 0.65 for the detection of the ethanol solution. Besides, the AuNPs/WS2@U-bent optical fiber EWA sensor exhibits high sensitivity in detection of the sodium chloride (NaCl), which can reach 1.5 when the proposed sensor was immersed into NaCl solution. Our work demonstrates that the U-bent optical fiber EWA sensor may have promising applications in testing the solution of concentration.

Fiber optical sensing on-board communication satellites

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hurni, A.; Lemke, N. M. K.; Roner, M.; Obermaier, J.; Putzer, P.; Kuhenuri Chami, N.

2017-11-01

Striving constantly to reduce mass, AIT effort and overall cost of the classical point-to-point wired temperature sensor harness on-board telecommunication satellites, OHB System (formerly Kayser-Threde) has introduced the Hybrid Sensor Bus (HSB) system. As a future spacecraft platform element, HSB relies on electrical remote sensor units as well as fiber-optical sensors, both of which can serially be connected in a bus architecture. HSB is a modular measurement system with many applications, also thanks to the opportunities posed by the digital I²C bus. The emphasis, however, is on the introduction of fiber optics and especially fiber-Bragg grating (FBG) temperature sensors as disruptive innovation for the company's satellite platforms. The light weight FBG sensors are directly inscribed in mechanically robust and radiation tolerant fibers, reducing the need for optical fiber connectors and splices to a minimum. Wherever an FBG sensor shall be used, the fiber is glued together with a corresponding temperature transducer to the satellites structure or to a subsystem. The transducer is necessary to provide decoupling of mechanical stress, but simultaneously ensure a high thermal conductivity. HSB has been developed in the frame of an ESA-ARTES program with European and German co-funding and will be verified as flight demonstrator on-board the German Heinrich Hertz satellite (H2Sat). In this paper the Engineering Model development of HSB is presented and a Fiber-optical Sensor Multiplexer for a more flexible sensor bus architecture is introduced. The HSB system aims at telecommunication satellite platforms with an operational life time beyond 15 years in geostationary orbit. It claims a high compatibility in terms of performance and interfaces with existing platforms while it was designed with future applications with increased radiation exposure already in mind. In its basic configuration HSB consists of four modules which are the Power Supply Unit, the HSB Controller Module, the Interrogator Controller Module and the Analog Front-End for the fiber-optical interrogation. The Interrogator Controller Module handles both, the electrical and fiber-optical sensor network. For the latter it is to be completed by the Analog Front-End. On this front-end, a tunable laser diode is implemented for the scanning of the FBG sensors. The reflected spectra are measured on multiple fiber channels and are then evaluated by use of a peak detection algorithm in order to obtain a precise temperature measurement. The precise operation of the photonic system on long terms can be guaranteed thanks to an inorbit calibration concept.

Object Acquisition and Tracking for Space-Based Surveillance

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-11-27

on multiple image frames, and, accordingly, requires a smaller signal to noise ratio. It is sometimes referred to as track before detect , and can...smaller sensor optics. Both the traditional and track before detect approaches are applicable to systems using scanning sensors, as well as those which use staring sensors.

TOPSAT: Global space topographic mission

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vetrella, Sergio

1993-01-01

Viewgraphs on TOPSAT Global Space Topographic Mission are presented. Topics covered include: polar region applications; terrestrial ecosystem applications; stereo electro-optical sensors; space-based stereoscopic missions; optical stereo approach; radar interferometry; along track interferometry; TOPSAT-VISTA system approach; ISARA system approach; topographic mapping laser altimeter; and role of multi-beam laser altimeter.

Design and Performance Evaluation of Sensors and Actuators for Advanced Optical Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Clark, Natalie

2011-01-01

Current state-of-the-art commercial sensors and actuators do not meet many of NASA s next generation spacecraft and instrument needs. Nor do they satisfy the DoD needs for satellite missions, especially micro/nano satellite missions. In an effort to develop advanced optical devices and instruments that meet mission requirements, NASA Langley recently completed construction of a new cleanroom housing equipment capable of fabricating high performance active optic and adaptive optic technologies including deformable mirrors, reconfigurable lenses (both refractive and diffractive), spectrometers, spectro-polarimeters, tunable filters and many other active optic devices. In addition to performance, these advanced optic technologies offer advantages in speed, size, weight, power consumption, and radiation tolerance. The active optic devices described in this paper rely on birefringent liquid crystal materials to alter either the phase or the polarization of the incoming light. Design considerations and performance evaluation results for various NASA applications are presented. Applications presented will include large space telescopes, optical communications, spacecraft windows, coronagraphs, and star trackers. Keywords: Photonics, Adaptive Optics, Tunable Filters, MEMs., MOEMs, Coronagraph, Star Tracker

LASER APPLICATIONS AND OTHER TOPICS IN QUANTUM ELECTRONICS: Use of Spun optical fibres in current sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gubin, Vladimir P.; Isaev, Victor A.; Morshnev, Sergey K.; Sazonov, Aleksandr I.; Starostin, Nikolay I.; Chamorovsky, Yury K.; Oussov, Aleksey I.

2006-03-01

The polarisation properties of a Spun optical fibre are studied in connection with their applications in fibreoptic current sensors based on the Faraday effect. A model of this fibre is proposed which represents it as an anisotropic medium with the spiral structure of the fast and slow birefringence axes. A sensor is developed based on an all-fibre low-coherence linear interferometer with a threshold sensitivity of 70 mA Hz-1/2, a maximum measured current of 3000 A, and a scale-factor reproducibility of ±0.6%. It is found that for a given diameter of the fibre contour, the normalised sensitivity is independent of the fibre length. The experimental results confirm the theory.

Finite element model for MOI applications using A-V formulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xuan, L.; Shanker, B.; Udpa, L.; Shih, W.; Fitzpatrick, G.

2001-04-01

Magneto-optic imaging (MOI) is a relatively new sensor application of an extension of bubble memory technology to NDT and produce easy-to-interpret, real time analog images. MOI systems use a magneto-optic (MO) sensor to produce analog images of magnetic flux leakage from surface and subsurface defects. The instrument's capability in detecting the relatively weak magnetic fields associated with subsurface defects depends on the sensitivity of the magneto-optic sensor. The availability of a theoretical model that can simulate the MOI system performance is extremely important for optimization of the MOI sensor and hardware system. A nodal finite element model based on magnetic vector potential formulation has been developed for simulating MOI phenomenon. This model has been used for predicting the magnetic fields in simple test geometry with corrosion dome defects. In the case of test samples with multiple discontinuities, a more robust model using the magnetic vector potential Ā and electrical scalar potential V is required. In this paper, a finite element model based on A-V formulation is developed to model complex circumferential crack under aluminum rivets in dimpled countersink.

A fiber optics system for monitoring utilization of ZnO adsorbent beds during desulfurization for logistic fuel cell applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sujan, Achintya; Yang, Hongyun; Dimick, Paul; Tatarchuk, Bruce J.

2016-05-01

An in-situ fiber optic based technique for direct measurement of capacity utilization of ZnO adsorbent beds by monitoring bed color changes during desulfurization for fuel cell systems is presented. Adsorbents composed of bulk metal oxides (ZnO) and supported metal oxides (ZnO/SiO2 and Cusbnd ZnO/SiO2) for H2S removal at 22 °C are examined. Adsorbent bed utilization at breakthrough is determined by the optical sensor as the maximum derivative of area under UV-vis spectrum from 250 to 800 nm observed as a function of service time. Since the response time of the sensor due to bed color change is close to bed breakthrough time, a series of probes along the bed predicts utilization of the portion of bed prior to H2S breakthrough. The efficacy of the optical sensor is evaluated as a function of inlet H2S concentration, H2S flow rate and desulfurization in presence of CO, CO2 and moisture in feed. A 6 mm optical probe is employed to measure utilization of a 3/16 inch ZnO extrudate bed for H2S removal. It is envisioned that with the application of the optical sensor, desulfurization can be carried out at high adsorbent utilization and low operational costs during on-board miniaturized fuel processing for logistic fuel cell power systems.

Integrated multi-channel nano-engineered optical hydrogen and temperature sensor detection systems for launch vehicles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alam, M. Z.; Moreno, J.; Aitchison, J. S.; Mojahedi, M.; Kazemi, A. A.

2008-08-01

Launch vehicles and other satellite users need launch services that are highly reliable, less complex, easier to test, and cost effective. Being a very small molecule, hydrogen is prone to leakage through seals and micro-cracks. Hydrogen detection in space application is very challenging; public acceptance of hydrogen fuel would require the integration of a reliable hydrogen safety sensor. For detecting leakage of cryogenic fluids in spaceport facilities, launch vehicle industry and aerospace agencies are currently relying heavily on the bulky mass spectrometers, which fill one or more equipment racks, and weigh several hundred kilograms. Therefore, there is a critical need for miniaturized sensors and instruments suitable for use in space applications. This paper describes a novel multi-channel integrated nano-engineered optical sensor to detect hydrogen and monitor the temperature. The integrated optic sensor is made of multi-channel waveguide elements that measure hydrogen concentration in real Time. Our sensor is based on the use of a high index waveguide with a Ni/Pd overlay to detect hydrogen. When hydrogen is absorbed into the Ni/Pd alloy there is a change in the absorption of the material and the optical signal in the waveguide is increased. Our design uses a thin alloy (few nanometers thick) overlay which facilitates the absorption of the hydrogen and will result in a response time of approximately few seconds. Like other Pd/Pd-Ni based sensors the device response varies with temperature and hence the effects of temperature variations must be taken into account. One solution to this problem is simultaneous measurement of temperature in addition to hydrogen concentration at the same vicinity. Our approach here is to propose a temperature sensor that can easily be integrated on the same platform as the hydrogen sensor reported earlier by our group. One suitable choice of material system is silicon on insulator (SOI). Here, we propose a micro ring resonators (MRR) based temperature sensor designed on SOI that measures temperature by monitoring the output optical power.

Nanophotonic Image Sensors

PubMed Central

Hu, Xin; Wen, Long; Yu, Yan; Cumming, David R. S.

2016-01-01

The increasing miniaturization and resolution of image sensors bring challenges to conventional optical elements such as spectral filters and polarizers, the properties of which are determined mainly by the materials used, including dye polymers. Recent developments in spectral filtering and optical manipulating techniques based on nanophotonics have opened up the possibility of an alternative method to control light spectrally and spatially. By integrating these technologies into image sensors, it will become possible to achieve high compactness, improved process compatibility, robust stability and tunable functionality. In this Review, recent representative achievements on nanophotonic image sensors are presented and analyzed including image sensors with nanophotonic color filters and polarizers, metamaterial‐based THz image sensors, filter‐free nanowire image sensors and nanostructured‐based multispectral image sensors. This novel combination of cutting edge photonics research and well‐developed commercial products may not only lead to an important application of nanophotonics but also offer great potential for next generation image sensors beyond Moore's Law expectations. PMID:27239941

Ultra-high resolution coded wavefront sensor.

PubMed

Wang, Congli; Dun, Xiong; Fu, Qiang; Heidrich, Wolfgang

2017-06-12

Wavefront sensors and more general phase retrieval methods have recently attracted a lot of attention in a host of application domains, ranging from astronomy to scientific imaging and microscopy. In this paper, we introduce a new class of sensor, the Coded Wavefront Sensor, which provides high spatio-temporal resolution using a simple masked sensor under white light illumination. Specifically, we demonstrate megapixel spatial resolution and phase accuracy better than 0.1 wavelengths at reconstruction rates of 50 Hz or more, thus opening up many new applications from high-resolution adaptive optics to real-time phase retrieval in microscopy.

Ammonia and ammonium hydroxide sensors for ammonia/water absorption machines: Literature review and data compilation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anheier, N. C., Jr.; McDonald, C. E.; Cuta, J. M.; Cuta, F. M.; Olsen, K. B.

1995-05-01

This report describes an evaluation of various sensing techniques for determining the ammonia concentration in the working fluid of ammonia/water absorption cycle systems. The purpose was to determine if any existing sensor technology or instrumentation could provide an accurate, reliable, and cost-effective continuous measure of ammonia concentration in water. The resulting information will be used for design optimization and cycle control in an ammonia-absorption heat pump. Pacific Northwest Laboratory (PNL) researchers evaluated each sensing technology against a set of general requirements characterizing the potential operating conditions within the absorption cycle. The criteria included the physical constraints for in situ operation, sensor characteristics, and sensor application. PNL performed an extensive literature search, which uncovered several promising sensing technologies that might be applicable to this problem. Sixty-two references were investigated, and 33 commercial vendors were identified as having ammonia sensors. The technologies for ammonia sensing are acoustic wave, refractive index, electrode, thermal, ion-selective field-effect transistor (ISFET), electrical conductivity, pH/colormetric, and optical absorption. Based on information acquired in the literature search, PNL recommends that follow-on activities focus on ISFET devices and a fiber optic evanescent sensor with a colormetric indicator. The ISFET and fiber optic evanescent sensor are inherently microminiature and capable of in situ measurements. Further, both techniques have been demonstrated selective to the ammonium ion (NH4(+)). The primary issue remaining is how to make the sensors sufficiently corrosion-resistant to be useful in practice.

Fiber optic control system integration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Poppel, G. L.; Glasheen, W. M.; Russell, J. C.

1987-01-01

A total fiber optic, integrated propulsion/flight control system concept for advanced fighter aircraft is presented. Fiber optic technology pertaining to this system is identified and evaluated for application readiness. A fiber optic sensor vendor survey was completed, and the results are reported. The advantages of centralized/direct architecture are reviewed, and the concept of the protocol branch is explained. Preliminary protocol branch selections are made based on the F-18/F404 application. Concepts for new optical tools are described. Development plans for the optical technology and the described system are included.

Optical technology for flight control systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mayanagi, M.

1986-01-01

Optical applications to the flight control system including optical data bus, sensors, and transducers are analyzed. Examples of optical data bus include airborne light optical fiber technology (ALOFT), F-5E, YA-7D, MIL-STD-1553 fiber optic data bus and NAL-optic data bus. This NAL-optic data bus is applied to STOL, and its characteristics are stressed. Principles and advantages of optical pulse-digital transducers are discussed.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Alonso, Jesus

Intelligent Optical Systems, Inc. has developed distributed intrinsic fiber optic sensors to directly quantify the concentration of dissolved or gas-phase CO 2 for leak detection or plume migration in carbon capture and sequestration (CCS). The capability of the sensor for highly sensitive detection of CO 2 in the pressure and temperature range of 15 to 2,000 psi and 25°C to 175°C was demonstrated, as was the capability of operating in highly corrosive and contaminated environments such as those often found in CO 2 injection sites. The novel sensor system was for the first time demonstrated deployed in a deep well,more » detecting multiple CO 2 releases, in real time, at varying depths. Early CO 2 release detection, by means of a sensor cable integrating multiple sensor segments, was demonstrated, as was the capability of quantifying the leak. The novel fiber optic sensor system exhibits capabilities not achieved by any other monitoring technology. This project represents a breakthrough in monitoring capabilities for CCS applications.« less

Fiber-Laser-Based Ultrasound Sensor for Photoacoustic Imaging

PubMed Central

Liang, Yizhi; Jin, Long; Wang, Lidai; Bai, Xue; Cheng, Linghao; Guan, Bai-Ou

2017-01-01

Photoacoustic imaging, especially for intravascular and endoscopic applications, requires ultrasound probes with miniature size and high sensitivity. In this paper, we present a new photoacoustic sensor based on a small-sized fiber laser. Incident ultrasound waves exert pressures on the optical fiber laser and induce harmonic vibrations of the fiber, which is detected by the frequency shift of the beating signal between the two orthogonal polarization modes in the fiber laser. This ultrasound sensor presents a noise-equivalent pressure of 40 Pa over a 50-MHz bandwidth. We demonstrate this new ultrasound sensor on an optical-resolution photoacoustic microscope. The axial and lateral resolutions are 48 μm and 3.3 μm. The field of view is up to 1.57 mm2. The sensor exhibits strong resistance to environmental perturbations, such as temperature changes, due to common-mode cancellation between the two orthogonal modes. The present fiber laser ultrasound sensor offers a new tool for all-optical photoacoustic imaging. PMID:28098201

Fiber optic sensors and systems at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Werneck, Marcelo M.; dos Santos, Paulo A. M.; Ferreira, Aldo P.; Maggi, Luis E.; de Carvalho, Carlos R., Jr.; Ribeiro, R. M.

1998-08-01

As widely known, fiberoptics (FO) are being used in a large variety of sensors and systems particularly for their small dimensions and low cost, large bandwidth and favorable dielectric properties. These properties have allowed us to develop sensors and systems for general applications and, particularly, for biomedical engineering. The intravascular pressure sensor was designed for small dimensions and high bandwidth. The system is based on light-intensity modulation technique and uses a 2 mm-diameter elastomer membrane as the sensor element and a pigtailed laser as a light source. The optical power output curve was linear for pressures within the range of 0 to 300 mmHg. The real time optical biosensor uses the evanescent field technique for monitoring Escherichia coli growth in culture media. The optical biosensor monitors interactions between the analytic (bacteria) and the evanescent field of an optical fiber passing through it. The FO based high voltage and current sensor is a measuring system designed for monitoring voltage and current in high voltage transmission lines. The linearity of the system is better than 2% in both ranges of 0 to 25 kV and 0 to 1000 A. The optical flowmeter uses a cross-correlation technique that analyses two light beams crossing the flow separated by a fixed distance. The x-ray image sensor uses a scintillating FO array, one FO for each image pixel to form an image of the x-ray field. The systems described in these paper use general-purpose components including optical fibers and optoelectronic devices, which are readily available, and of low cost.

Research progress in fiber optic sensors and systems at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Werneck, Marcelo M.; Ferreira, Aldo P.; Maggi, Luis E.; De Carvalho, C. C.; Ribeiro, R. M.

1999-02-01

As widely known, fiberoptics (FO) are being used in a large variety of sensor an systems particularly for their small dimensions and low cost, large bandwidth and favorable dielectric properties. These properties have allowed us to develop sensor and systems for general applications and, particularly, for biomedical engineering. The intravasculator pressure sensor was designed for small dimensions and high bandwidth. The system is based on light- intensity modulation technique and use a 2 mm-diameter elastomer membrane as the sensor element and a pigtailed laser as a light source. The optical power out put curve was linear for pressures within the range of 0 to 300 mmHg. The real time optical biosensor uses the evanescent field technique for monitoring Escherichia coli growth in culture media. The optical biosensor monitors interactions between the analytic and the evanescent field of an optical fiber passing through it. The FO based high voltage and current sensor is a measuring system designed for monitoring voltage and current in high voltage transmission lines. The linearity of the system is better than 2 percent in both ranges of 0 to 25 kV and 0 to 1000 A. The optical flowmeter uses a cross-correlation technique that analyzes two light beams crossing the flow separated by a fixed distance. The x-ray image sensor uses a scintillating FO array, one FO for each image pixel to form an image of the x-ray field. The systems described in this paper use general-purpose components including optical fibers and optoelectronic devices, which are readily available, and of low cost.

Photonic hydrogel sensors.

PubMed

Yetisen, Ali K; Butt, Haider; Volpatti, Lisa R; Pavlichenko, Ida; Humar, Matjaž; Kwok, Sheldon J J; Koo, Heebeom; Kim, Ki Su; Naydenova, Izabela; Khademhosseini, Ali; Hahn, Sei Kwang; Yun, Seok Hyun

2016-01-01

Analyte-sensitive hydrogels that incorporate optical structures have emerged as sensing platforms for point-of-care diagnostics. The optical properties of the hydrogel sensors can be rationally designed and fabricated through self-assembly, microfabrication or laser writing. The advantages of photonic hydrogel sensors over conventional assay formats include label-free, quantitative, reusable, and continuous measurement capability that can be integrated with equipment-free text or image display. This Review explains the operation principles of photonic hydrogel sensors, presents syntheses of stimuli-responsive polymers, and provides an overview of qualitative and quantitative readout technologies. Applications in clinical samples are discussed, and potential future directions are identified. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Surface Plasmon Resonance-Based Fiber Optic Sensors Utilizing Molecular Imprinting

PubMed Central

Gupta, Banshi D.; Shrivastav, Anand M.; Usha, Sruthi P.

2016-01-01

Molecular imprinting is earning worldwide attention from researchers in the field of sensing and diagnostic applications, due to its properties of inevitable specific affinity for the template molecule. The fabrication of complementary template imprints allows this technique to achieve high selectivity for the analyte to be sensed. Sensors incorporating this technique along with surface plasmon or localized surface plasmon resonance (SPR/LSPR) provide highly sensitive real time detection with quick response times. Unfolding these techniques with optical fiber provide the additional advantages of miniaturized probes with ease of handling, online monitoring and remote sensing. In this review a summary of optical fiber sensors using the combined approaches of molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) and the SPR/LSPR technique is discussed. An overview of the fundamentals of SPR/LSPR implementation on optical fiber is provided. The review also covers the molecular imprinting technology (MIT) with its elementary study, synthesis procedures and its applications for chemical and biological anlayte detection with different sensing methods. In conclusion, we explore the advantages, challenges and the future perspectives of developing highly sensitive and selective methods for the detection of analytes utilizing MIT with the SPR/LSPR phenomenon on optical fiber platforms. PMID:27589746

An integrated micro-volume fiber-optic sensor for oxygen determination in exhaled breath based on iridium(III) complexes immobilized in fluorinated xerogels.

PubMed

Xiong, Yan; Ye, Zhongbin; Xu, Jing; Zhu, Yuanqiang; Chen, Chen; Guan, Yafeng

2013-03-21

A novel integrated fiber-optic sensor with micro detection volume is developed and evaluated for O(2) determination on a breath-by-breath basis in human health monitoring applications. The sensing element was fabricated by dip-coating an uncladded optical fiber with [Ir(piq)(2)(acac)]-doped hybrid fluorinated ORMOSIL (organically modified silicate) film, which was prepared from 3,3,3-trifluoropropyltrimethoxysilane (TFP-TriMOS) and n-propyltrimethoxysilane (n-propyl-TriMOS). The sensor was then constructed by inserting the prepared optical fiber into a transparent capillary. A microchannel formed between the optical fiber and the capillary inner wall acted as a flow cell for the sample flowing through. The evanescent wave (EW) field produced on the fiber core surface can excite the O(2)-sensitive fluorophores of [Ir(piq)(2)(acac)] to produce emission fluorescence. O(2) can be sensed by its quenching effect on the emission fluorescence intensity. Spectroscopic properties have been characterized by FTIR and fluorescence measurements. Stern-Volmer and Demas models were both employed to analyse the sensor sensitivity, which is 13.0 with the LOD = 0.009% (3σ) and the response time is about 1 s. By integrating the sensing and detection elements on the optical fiber, the novel configuration showed advantages of easy fabrication and low cost. Parameters of sensitivity, response time, repeatability, humidity effect and temperature effect were discussed in detail. The proposed sensor showed potential for practical in-breath O(2) analysis application due to its advantages of easy fabrication, low cost, fast response, excellent hydrophobicity, negligible temperature interference and suitable sensitivity.

Design and test of a biosensor-based multisensorial system: a proof of concept study.

PubMed

Santonico, Marco; Pennazza, Giorgio; Grasso, Simone; D'Amico, Arnaldo; Bizzarri, Mariano

2013-12-04

Sensors are often organized in multidimensional systems or networks for particular applications. This is facilitated by the large improvements in the miniaturization process, power consumption reduction and data analysis techniques nowadays possible. Such sensors are frequently organized in multidimensional arrays oriented to the realization of artificial sensorial systems mimicking the mechanisms of human senses. Instruments that make use of these sensors are frequently employed in the fields of medicine and food science. Among them, the so-called electronic nose and tongue are becoming more and more popular. In this paper an innovative multisensorial system based on sensing materials of biological origin is illustrated. Anthocyanins are exploited here as chemical interactive materials for both quartz microbalance (QMB) transducers used as gas sensors and for electrodes used as liquid electrochemical sensors. The optical properties of anthocyanins are well established and widely used, but they have never been exploited as sensing materials for both gas and liquid sensors in non-optical applications. By using the same set of selected anthocyanins an integrated system has been realized, which includes a gas sensor array based on QMB and a sensor array for liquids made up of suitable Ion Sensitive Electrodes (ISEs). The arrays are also monitored from an optical point of view. This embedded system, is intended to mimic the working principles of the nose, tongue and eyes. We call this setup BIONOTE (for BIOsensor-based multisensorial system for mimicking NOse, Tongue and Eyes). The complete design, fabrication and calibration processes of the BIONOTE system are described herein, and a number of preliminary results are discussed. These results are relative to: (a) the characterization of the optical properties of the tested materials; (b) the performance of the whole system as gas sensor array with respect to ethanol, hexane and isopropyl alcohol detection (concentration range 0.1-7 ppm) and as a liquid sensor array (concentration range 73-98 μM).

Development of fiber optic sensing interrogators for launchers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Plattner, M. P.; Buck, T. C.; Eder, B.; Reutlinger, A.; McKenzie, I.

2017-11-01

We present our work about the development of two complementary interrogation schemes based on fiber optic sensing for the use of structural and thermal monitoring of Ariane launchers. The advantages of fiber optic sensing in particular light-weight, immunity to electromagnetic interferences and the possibility of sensor distribution along optical fibers are driving factors for utilization of this technology in space crafts [1]. The edge-filter (EF) and scanning-laser (SL) interrogators for determination of the mean wavelength of fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors have been implemented as two separate demonstrators. Within this paper we describe the functional principles of both interrogators. Furthermore we present test results where the developed systems have been used for readout of FBG sensors which are implemented in an Ariane structural demonstrator during thermal, thermal-vacuum and vibration tests. Functionality of both systems is demonstrated and their potential for further development towards space qualified systems is shown. Since the performance characteristics of the two systems are different from each other, they are dedicated for different sensing applications on a launcher. The EF sensor interrogator provides a sample rate of 20 kHz at a number of 4 connected sensors and supports parallel readout and aliasing free operation. Therefore it is best suited for high priority measurement. Structural monitoring which requires the acquisition of real time sensor information in order to support control of the launcher is one operation area for a future EF system. The SL interrogator provides an overall measurement rate of 1 kHz at a number of 24 connected sensors distributed on three sensor channels. It can be adapted to any sensors that have design wavelengths lying within the output spectrum of the laser diode. Furthermore the number of overall sensors to be read out with this system can be adapted easily. Thermal mapping of satellite panels is one possible future application for the SL interrogator.

Evaluation on Radiometric Capability of Chinese Optical Satellite Sensors.

PubMed

Yang, Aixia; Zhong, Bo; Wu, Shanlong; Liu, Qinhuo

2017-01-22

The radiometric capability of on-orbit sensors should be updated on time due to changes induced by space environmental factors and instrument aging. Some sensors, such as Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), have onboard calibrators, which enable real-time calibration. However, most Chinese remote sensing satellite sensors lack onboard calibrators. Their radiometric calibrations have been updated once a year based on a vicarious calibration procedure, which has affected the applications of the data. Therefore, a full evaluation of the sensors' radiometric capabilities is essential before quantitative applications can be made. In this study, a comprehensive procedure for evaluating the radiometric capability of several Chinese optical satellite sensors is proposed. In this procedure, long-term radiometric stability and radiometric accuracy are the two major indicators for radiometric evaluation. The radiometric temporal stability is analyzed by the tendency of long-term top-of-atmosphere (TOA) reflectance variation; the radiometric accuracy is determined by comparison with the TOA reflectance from MODIS after spectrally matching. Three Chinese sensors including the Charge-Coupled Device (CCD) camera onboard Huan Jing 1 satellite (HJ-1), as well as the Visible and Infrared Radiometer (VIRR) and Medium-Resolution Spectral Imager (MERSI) onboard the Feng Yun 3 satellite (FY-3) are evaluated in reflective bands based on this procedure. The results are reasonable, and thus can provide reliable reference for the sensors' application, and as such will promote the development of Chinese satellite data.

Demonstration of a Fiber Optic Regression Probe

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Korman, Valentin; Polzin, Kurt A.

2010-01-01

The capability to provide localized, real-time monitoring of material regression rates in various applications has the potential to provide a new stream of data for development testing of various components and systems, as well as serving as a monitoring tool in flight applications. These applications include, but are not limited to, the regression of a combusting solid fuel surface, the ablation of the throat in a chemical rocket or the heat shield of an aeroshell, and the monitoring of erosion in long-life plasma thrusters. The rate of regression in the first application is very fast, while the second and third are increasingly slower. A recent fundamental sensor development effort has led to a novel regression, erosion, and ablation sensor technology (REAST). The REAST sensor allows for measurement of real-time surface erosion rates at a discrete surface location. The sensor is optical, using two different, co-located fiber-optics to perform the regression measurement. The disparate optical transmission properties of the two fiber-optics makes it possible to measure the regression rate by monitoring the relative light attenuation through the fibers. As the fibers regress along with the parent material in which they are embedded, the relative light intensities through the two fibers changes, providing a measure of the regression rate. The optical nature of the system makes it relatively easy to use in a variety of harsh, high temperature environments, and it is also unaffected by the presence of electric and magnetic fields. In addition, the sensor could be used to perform optical spectroscopy on the light emitted by a process and collected by fibers, giving localized measurements of various properties. The capability to perform an in-situ measurement of material regression rates is useful in addressing a variety of physical issues in various applications. An in-situ measurement allows for real-time data regarding the erosion rates, providing a quick method for empirically anchoring any analysis geared towards lifetime qualification. Erosion rate data over an operating envelope could also be useful in the modeling detailed physical processes. The sensor has been embedded in many regressing media for the purposes of proof-of-concept testing. A gross demonstration of its capabilities was performed using a sanding wheel to remove layers of metal. A longer-term demonstration measurement involved the placement of the sensor in a brake pad, monitoring the removal of pad material associated with the normal wear-and-tear of driving. It was used to measure the regression rates of the combustable media in small model rocket motors and road flares. Finally, a test was performed using a sand blaster to remove small amounts of material at a time. This test was aimed at demonstrating the unit's present resolution, and is compared with laser profilometry data obtained simultaneously. At the lowest resolution levels, this unit should be useful in locally quantifying the erosion rates of the channel walls in plasma thrusters. .

Optical bio-sniffer for methyl mercaptan in halitosis.

PubMed

Mitsubayashi, Kohji; Minamide, Takeshi; Otsuka, Kimio; Kudo, Hiroyuki; Saito, Hirokazu

2006-07-28

An optical bio-sniffer for methyl mercaptan (MM) one of major odorous chemicals in halitosis (bad breath) was constructed by immobilizing monoamine oxidase type A (MAO-A) onto a tip of a fiber optic oxygen sensor (od: 1.59 mm) with an oxygen sensitive ruthenium organic complex (excitation: 470 nm, fluorescent: 600 nm). A flow cell for circulating buffer solution was applied to rinse and clean the tip of the device like nasal mucosa. In order to amplify the bio-sniffer output, a substrate regeneration cycle caused by coupling MAO-A with l-ascorbic acid (AsA) as reducing reaction with reagent system was applied to the sensor system. After evaluating the sensor characteristics using a gas flow measurement system with a gas generator, the optical bio-sniffer was applied to expired gases from healthy male volunteers for halitosis analysis as a physiological application. The optical bio-sniffer was applied to detect the oxygen consumption induced by MAO-A enzymatic reaction (and AsA chemical reduction) with gaseous MM application. The bio-sniffer was calibrated against MM vapor from 8.7 to 11500 ppb with correlation coefficient of 0.977, including a MM threshold (200 ppb) of pathologic halitosis and the human sense of smell level 3.5 (10.0 ppb), with good gas-selectivity based on the MAO-A substrate specificity. As the result of the physiological application, the optical bio-sniffer could successfully monitor the MM level change in breath samples during daytime, which is consistent with the previously reported results.

Fiber optic oxygen sensor leak detection system for space applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kazemi, Alex A.; Goswami, Kish; Mendoza, Edgar A.; Kempen, Lothar U.

2007-09-01

This paper describes the successful test of a multi-point fiber optic oxygen sensor system during the static firing of an Evolved Expandable Launch Vehicle (EELV)/Delta IV common booster core (CBC) rocket engine at NASA's Stennis Flight Center. The system consisted of microsensors (optrodes) using an oxygen gas sensitive indicator incorporated onto an optically transparent porous substrate. The modular optoelectronics and multiplexing network system was designed and assembled utilizing a multi-channel opto-electronic sensor readout unit that monitored the oxygen and temperature response of the individual optrodes in real-time and communicated this information via a serial communication port to a remote laptop computer. The sensor packaging for oxygen consisted of two optrodes - one doped with an indicator sensitive to oxygen, and the other doped with an indicator sensitive to temperature. The multichannel oxygen sensor system is fully reversible. It has demonstrated a dynamic response to oxygen gas in the range of 0% to 100% with 0.1% resolution and a response time of <=10 seconds. The sensor package was attached to a custom fiber optic ribbon cable, which was then connected to a fiber optic trunk communications cable (standard telecommunications-grade fiber) that connected to the optoelectronics module. Each board in the expandable module included light sources, photo-detectors, and associated electronics required for detecting oxygen and temperature. The paper illustrates the sensor design and performance data under field deployment conditions.

Micro-patterning and characterization of PHEMA-co-PAM-based optical chemical sensors for lab-on-a-chip applications

PubMed Central

Zhu, Haixin; Zhou, Xianfeng; Su, Fengyu; Tian, Yanqing; Ashili, Shashanka; Holl, Mark R.; Meldrum, Deirdre R.

2012-01-01

We report a novel method for wafer level, high throughput optical chemical sensor patterning, with precise control of the sensor volume and capability of producing arbitrary microscale patterns. Monomeric oxygen (O2) and pH optical probes were polymerized with 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) and acrylamide (AM) to form spin-coatable and further crosslinkable polymers. A micro-patterning method based on micro-fabrication techniques (photolithography, wet chemical process and reactive ion etch) was developed to miniaturize the sensor film onto glass substrates in arbitrary sizes and shapes. The sensitivity of fabricated micro-patterns was characterized under various oxygen concentrations and pH values. The process for spatially integration of two sensors (Oxygen and pH) on the same substrate surface was also developed, and preliminary fabrication and characterization results were presented. To the best of our knowledge, it is the first time that poly (2-hydroxylethyl methacrylate)-co-poly (acrylamide) (PHEMA-co-PAM)-based sensors had been patterned and integrated at the wafer level with micron scale precision control using microfabrication techniques. The developed methods can provide a feasible way to miniaturize and integrate the optical chemical sensor system and can be applied to any lab-on-a-chip system, especially the biological micro-systems requiring optical sensing of single or multiple analytes. PMID:23175599

Evaluation of the electro-optic direction sensor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnson, A. R.; Salomon, P. M.

1973-01-01

Evaluation of a no-moving-parts single-axis star tracker called an electro-optic direction sensor (EODS) concept is described and the results are given in detail. The work involved experimental evaluation of a breadboard sensor yielding results which would permit design of a prototype sensor for a specific application. The laboratory work included evaluation of the noise equivalent input angle of the sensor, demonstration of a technique for producing an acquisition signal, constraints on the useful field-of-view, and a qualitative evaluation of the effects of stray light. In addition, the potential of the silicon avalanche-type photodiode for this application was investigated. No benefit in noise figure was found, but the easily adjustable gain of the avalanche device was useful. The use of mechanical tuning of the modulating element to reduce voltage requirements was also explored. The predicted performance of EODS in both photomultiplier and solid state detector configurations was compared to an existing state-of-the-art star tracker.

Analysis of using PDMS polymer as the sensors of the pressure or weight

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jargus, Jan; Nedoma, Jan; Fajkus, Marcel; Novak, Martin; Mec, Pavel; Cvejn, Daniel; Bujdos, David; Vasinek, Vladimir

2017-10-01

Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) can be used for its optical properties, and its composition offers the possibility of use in the diverse environments (industry, photonics, medicine applications, security devices and etc.). Therefore authors of this article focused on more detailed working with this material. This material could be use for the sensory applications such as the sensor of pressure or weight, which may find use also in the field of security and defense. The article describes the process of making the prototype of the sensor and its verification based on laboratory results. Measurement methodology is based on the determination of the change of optical power at the output of the sensor prototype depending on the change in pressure or weight. We estimate the maximum load of the sensor on the basis of the laboratory results in the units of tons. Using a calibration measurement can determine the amount of pressure and weight with an accuracy of +/- 2 %.

A Short Distance CW-Radar Sensor at 77 GHz in LTCC for Industrial Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rusch, Christian; Klein, Tobias; Beer, Stefan; Zwick, Thomas

2013-12-01

The paper presents a Continuous-Wave(CW)-Radar sensor for high accuracy distance measurements in industrial applications. The usage of radar sensors in industrial scenarios has the advantage of a robust functionality in wet or dusty environments where optical systems reach their limits. This publication shows that accuracies of a few micro-meters are possible with millimeter-wave systems. In addition to distance measurement results the paper describes the sensor concept, the experimental set-up with the measurement process and possibilities to increase the accuracy even further.

Fiber optic Raman sensor to monitor the concentration ratio of nitrogen and oxygen in a cryogenic mixture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tiwari, Vidhu S.; Kalluru, Rajamohan R.; Yueh, Fang Y.; Singh, Jagdish P.; St. Cyr, William; Khijwania, Sunil K.

2007-06-01

A spontaneous Raman scattering optical fiber sensor was developed for a specific need of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for long-term detection and monitoring of the purity of liquid oxygen (LO2) in the oxidizer feed line during ground testing of rocket engines. The Raman peak intensity ratios for liquid nitrogen (LN2) and LO2 with varied weight ratios (LN2/LO2) were analyzed for their applicability to impurity sensing. The study of the sensor performance with different excitation light sources has helped to design a miniaturized, cost-effective system for this application. The optimal system response time of this miniaturized sensor for LN2/LO2 measurement was found to be in the range of a few seconds. It will need to be further reduced to the millisecond range for real-time, quantitative monitoring of the quality of cryogenic fluids in a harsh envioronment.

Optical Aptasensors for Adenosine Triphosphate

PubMed Central

Ng, Stella; Lim, Hui Si; Ma, Qian; Gao, Zhiqiang

2016-01-01

Nucleic acids are among the most researched and applied biomolecules. Their diverse two- and three-dimensional structures in conjunction with their robust chemistry and ease of manipulation provide a rare opportunity for sensor applications. Moreover, their high biocompatibility has seen them being used in the construction of in vivo assays. Various nucleic acid-based devices have been extensively studied as either the principal element in discrete molecule-like sensors or as the main component in the fabrication of sensing devices. The use of aptamers in sensors - aptasensors, in particular, has led to improvements in sensitivity, selectivity, and multiplexing capacity for a wide verity of analytes like proteins, nucleic acids, as well as small biomolecules such as glucose and adenosine triphosphate (ATP). This article reviews the progress in the use of aptamers as the principal component in sensors for optical detection of ATP with an emphasis on sensing mechanism, performance, and applications with some discussion on challenges and perspectives. PMID:27446501

Optical Aptasensors for Adenosine Triphosphate.

PubMed

Ng, Stella; Lim, Hui Si; Ma, Qian; Gao, Zhiqiang

2016-01-01

Nucleic acids are among the most researched and applied biomolecules. Their diverse two- and three-dimensional structures in conjunction with their robust chemistry and ease of manipulation provide a rare opportunity for sensor applications. Moreover, their high biocompatibility has seen them being used in the construction of in vivo assays. Various nucleic acid-based devices have been extensively studied as either the principal element in discrete molecule-like sensors or as the main component in the fabrication of sensing devices. The use of aptamers in sensors - aptasensors, in particular, has led to improvements in sensitivity, selectivity, and multiplexing capacity for a wide verity of analytes like proteins, nucleic acids, as well as small biomolecules such as glucose and adenosine triphosphate (ATP). This article reviews the progress in the use of aptamers as the principal component in sensors for optical detection of ATP with an emphasis on sensing mechanism, performance, and applications with some discussion on challenges and perspectives.

Fiber Optic Thermo-Hygrometers for Soil Moisture Monitoring.

PubMed

Leone, Marco; Principe, Sofia; Consales, Marco; Parente, Roberto; Laudati, Armando; Caliro, Stefano; Cutolo, Antonello; Cusano, Andrea

2017-06-20

This work deals with the fabrication, prototyping, and experimental validation of a fiber optic thermo-hygrometer-based soil moisture sensor, useful for rainfall-induced landslide prevention applications. In particular, we recently proposed a new generation of fiber Bragg grating (FBGs)-based soil moisture sensors for irrigation purposes. This device was realized by integrating, inside a customized aluminum protection package, a FBG thermo-hygrometer with a polymer micro-porous membrane. Here, we first verify the limitations, in terms of the volumetric water content (VWC) measuring range, of this first version of the soil moisture sensor for its exploitation in landslide prevention applications. Successively, we present the development, prototyping, and experimental validation of a novel, optimized version of a soil VWC sensor, still based on a FBG thermo-hygrometer, but able to reliably monitor, continuously and in real-time, VWC values up to 37% when buried in the soil.

Fiber Optic Thermo-Hygrometers for Soil Moisture Monitoring

PubMed Central

Leone, Marco; Principe, Sofia; Consales, Marco; Parente, Roberto; Laudati, Armando; Caliro, Stefano; Cutolo, Antonello; Cusano, Andrea

2017-01-01

This work deals with the fabrication, prototyping, and experimental validation of a fiber optic thermo-hygrometer-based soil moisture sensor, useful for rainfall-induced landslide prevention applications. In particular, we recently proposed a new generation of fiber Bragg grating (FBGs)-based soil moisture sensors for irrigation purposes. This device was realized by integrating, inside a customized aluminum protection package, a FBG thermo-hygrometer with a polymer micro-porous membrane. Here, we first verify the limitations, in terms of the volumetric water content (VWC) measuring range, of this first version of the soil moisture sensor for its exploitation in landslide prevention applications. Successively, we present the development, prototyping, and experimental validation of a novel, optimized version of a soil VWC sensor, still based on a FBG thermo-hygrometer, but able to reliably monitor, continuously and in real-time, VWC values up to 37% when buried in the soil. PMID:28632172

Relative-Motion Sensors and Actuators for Two Optical Tables

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gursel, Yekta; McKenney, Elizabeth

2004-01-01

Optoelectronic sensors and magnetic actuators have been developed as parts of a system for controlling the relative position and attitude of two massive optical tables that float on separate standard air suspensions that attenuate ground vibrations. In the specific application for which these sensors and actuators were developed, one of the optical tables holds an optical system that mimics distant stars, while the other optical table holds a test article that simulates a spaceborne stellar interferometer that would be used to observe the stars. The control system is designed to suppress relative motion of the tables or, on demand, to impose controlled relative motion between the tables. The control system includes a sensor system that detects relative motion of the tables in six independent degrees of freedom and a drive system that can apply force to the star-simulator table in the six degrees of freedom. The sensor system includes (1) a set of laser heterodyne gauges and (2) a set of four diode lasers on the star-simulator table, each aimed at one of four quadrant photodiodes at nominal corresponding positions on the test-article table. The heterodyne gauges are used to measure relative displacements along the x axis.

Optical power-based interrogation of plasmonic tilted fiber Bragg grating biosensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

González-Vila, Á.; Lopez-Aldaba, A.; Kinet, D.; Mégret, P.; Lopez-Amo, M.; Caucheteur, C.

2017-04-01

Two interrogation techniques for plasmonic tilted fiber Bragg grating sensors are reported and experimentally tested. Typical interrogation methods are usually based on tracking the wavelength shift of the most sensitive cladding mode, but for biosensing applications, spectrometer-based methods can be replaced by more efficient solutions. The proposed techniques thus rely on the measurement of the induced changes in optical power. The first one consists of a properly polarized tunable laser source set to emit at the wavelength of the sensor most sensitive mode and an optical power meter to measure the transmitted response. For the second method, a uniform fiber Bragg grating is photo-inscribed beyond the sensor in such a way that its central wavelength matches the sensor most sensitive mode, acting as an optical filter. Using a LED source, light reflected backwards by this grating is partially attenuated when passing through the sensor due to plasmon wave excitation and the power changes are quantified once again with an optical power meter. A performance analysis of the techniques is carried out and they both result competitive interrogation solutions. The work thus focuses on the development of cost-effective alternatives for monitoring this kind of biosensors in practical situations.

A Theoretical Study and Numerical Simulation of a Quasi-Distributed Sensor Based on the Low-Finesse Fabry-Perot Interferometer: Frequency-Division Multiplexing.

PubMed

Guillen Bonilla, José Trinidad; Guillen Bonilla, Alex; Rodríguez Betancourtt, Verónica M; Guillen Bonilla, Héctor; Casillas Zamora, Antonio

2017-04-14

The application of the sensor optical fibers in the areas of scientific instrumentation and industrial instrumentation is very attractive due to its numerous advantages. In the industry of civil engineering for example, quasi-distributed sensors made with optical fiber are used for reliable strain and temperature measurements. Here, a quasi-distributed sensor in the frequency domain is discussed. The sensor consists of a series of low-finesse Fabry-Perot interferometers where each Fabry-Perot interferometer acts as a local sensor. Fabry-Perot interferometers are formed by pairs of identical low reflective Bragg gratings imprinted in a single mode fiber. All interferometer sensors have different cavity length, provoking frequency-domain multiplexing. The optical signal represents the superposition of all interference patterns which can be decomposed using the Fourier transform. The frequency spectrum was analyzed and sensor's properties were defined. Following that, a quasi-distributed sensor was numerically simulated. Our sensor simulation considers sensor properties, signal processing, noise system, and instrumentation. The numerical results show the behavior of resolution vs. signal-to-noise ratio. From our results, the Fabry-Perot sensor has high resolution and low resolution. Both resolutions are conceivable because the Fourier Domain Phase Analysis (FDPA) algorithm elaborates two evaluations of Bragg wavelength shift.

Time-division multiplexing of polarization-insensitive fiber-optic Michelson interferometric sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, S. C.; Lin, W. W.; Chen, M. H.

1995-06-01

A system of time-division multiplexing of polarization-insensitive fiber-optic Michelson interferometric sensors that uses Faraday rotator mirror elements is demonstrated. This system is constructed with conventional low-birefringence single-mode fiber and is able to solve the polarization-fading problem by a combination of Faraday rotator mirrors with unbalanced Michelson interferometers. The system is lead-fiber insensitive and has potentials for practical field applications.

Biomedical application of optical fibre sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Correia, R.; James, S.; Lee, S.-W.; Morgan, S. P.; Korposh, S.

2018-07-01

Optical fibre sensors (OFS), as a result of their unique properties such as small size, no interference with electromagnetic radiation, high sensitivity and the ability to design multiplexed or distributed sensing systems, have found applications ranging from structural health monitoring to biomedical and point of care instrumentation. While the former represents the main commercial application for OFS, there is body of literature concerning the deployment of this versatile sensing platform in healthcare. This paper reviews the different types of OFS and their most recent applications in healthcare. It aims to help clinicians to better understand OFS technology and also provides an overview of the challenges involved in the deployment of developed technology in healthcare. Examples of the application of OFS in healthcare are discussed with particular emphasis on recently (2015–2017) published works to avoid replicating recent review papers. The majority of the work on the development of biomedical OFS stops at the laboratory stage and, with a few exceptions, is not explored in healthcare settings. OFSs have yet to fulfil their great potential in healthcare and methods of increasing the adoption of medical devices based on optical fibres are discussed. It is important to consider these factors early in the device development process for successful translation of the developed sensors to healthcare practice.

Time-Of-Flight Camera, Optical Tracker and Computed Tomography in Pairwise Data Registration.

PubMed

Pycinski, Bartlomiej; Czajkowska, Joanna; Badura, Pawel; Juszczyk, Jan; Pietka, Ewa

2016-01-01

A growing number of medical applications, including minimal invasive surgery, depends on multi-modal or multi-sensors data processing. Fast and accurate 3D scene analysis, comprising data registration, seems to be crucial for the development of computer aided diagnosis and therapy. The advancement of surface tracking system based on optical trackers already plays an important role in surgical procedures planning. However, new modalities, like the time-of-flight (ToF) sensors, widely explored in non-medical fields are powerful and have the potential to become a part of computer aided surgery set-up. Connection of different acquisition systems promises to provide a valuable support for operating room procedures. Therefore, the detailed analysis of the accuracy of such multi-sensors positioning systems is needed. We present the system combining pre-operative CT series with intra-operative ToF-sensor and optical tracker point clouds. The methodology contains: optical sensor set-up and the ToF-camera calibration procedures, data pre-processing algorithms, and registration technique. The data pre-processing yields a surface, in case of CT, and point clouds for ToF-sensor and marker-driven optical tracker representation of an object of interest. An applied registration technique is based on Iterative Closest Point algorithm. The experiments validate the registration of each pair of modalities/sensors involving phantoms of four various human organs in terms of Hausdorff distance and mean absolute distance metrics. The best surface alignment was obtained for CT and optical tracker combination, whereas the worst for experiments involving ToF-camera. The obtained accuracies encourage to further develop the multi-sensors systems. The presented substantive discussion concerning the system limitations and possible improvements mainly related to the depth information produced by the ToF-sensor is useful for computer aided surgery developers.

Sensors with centroid-based common sensing scheme and their multiplexing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Berkcan, Ertugrul; Tiemann, Jerome J.; Brooksby, Glen W.

1993-03-01

The ability to multiplex sensors with different measurands but with a common sensing scheme is of importance in aircraft and aircraft engine applications; this unification of the sensors into a common interface has major implications for weight, cost, and reliability. A new class of sensors based on a common sensing scheme and their E/O Interface has been developed. The approach detects the location of the centroid of a beam of light; the set of fiber optic sensors with this sensing scheme include linear and rotary position, temperature, pressure, as well as duct Mach number. The sensing scheme provides immunity to intensity variations of the source or due to environmental effects on the fiber. A detector spatially multiplexed common electro-optic interface for the sensors has been demonstrated with a position and a temperature sensor.

Implementation of a rapid correction algorithm for adaptive optics using a plenoptic sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ko, Jonathan; Wu, Chensheng; Davis, Christopher C.

2016-09-01

Adaptive optics relies on the accuracy and speed of a wavefront sensor in order to provide quick corrections to distortions in the optical system. In weaker cases of atmospheric turbulence often encountered in astronomical fields, a traditional Shack-Hartmann sensor has proved to be very effective. However, in cases of stronger atmospheric turbulence often encountered near the surface of the Earth, atmospheric turbulence no longer solely causes small tilts in the wavefront. Instead, lasers passing through strong or "deep" atmospheric turbulence encounter beam breakup, which results in interference effects and discontinuities in the incoming wavefront. In these situations, a Shack-Hartmann sensor can no longer effectively determine the shape of the incoming wavefront. We propose a wavefront reconstruction and correction algorithm based around the plenoptic sensor. The plenoptic sensor's design allows it to match and exceed the wavefront sensing capabilities of a Shack-Hartmann sensor for our application. Novel wavefront reconstruction algorithms can take advantage of the plenoptic sensor to provide a rapid wavefront reconstruction necessary for real time turbulence. To test the integrity of the plenoptic sensor and its reconstruction algorithms, we use artificially generated turbulence in a lab scale environment to simulate the structure and speed of outdoor atmospheric turbulence. By analyzing the performance of our system with and without the closed-loop plenoptic sensor adaptive optics system, we can show that the plenoptic sensor is effective in mitigating real time lab generated atmospheric turbulence.

Photonics for aerospace sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pellegrino, John; Adler, Eric D.; Filipov, Andree N.; Harrison, Lorna J.; van der Gracht, Joseph; Smith, Dale J.; Tayag, Tristan J.; Viveiros, Edward A.

1992-11-01

The maturation in the state-of-the-art of optical components is enabling increased applications for the technology. Most notable is the ever-expanding market for fiber optic data and communications links, familiar in both commercial and military markets. The inherent properties of optics and photonics, however, have suggested that components and processors may be designed that offer advantages over more commonly considered digital approaches for a variety of airborne sensor and signal processing applications. Various academic, industrial, and governmental research groups have been actively investigating and exploiting these properties of high bandwidth, large degree of parallelism in computation (e.g., processing in parallel over a two-dimensional field), and interconnectivity, and have succeeded in advancing the technology to the stage of systems demonstration. Such advantages as computational throughput and low operating power consumption are highly attractive for many computationally intensive problems. This review covers the key devices necessary for optical signal and image processors, some of the system application demonstration programs currently in progress, and active research directions for the implementation of next-generation architectures.

Passive-quadrature demodulated localized-Michelson fiber-optic strain sensor embedded in composite materials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Valis, Tomas; Tapanes, Edward; Liu, Kexing; Measures, Raymond M.

1991-04-01

A strain sensor embedded in composite materials that is intrinsic, all fiber, local, and phase demodulated is described. It is the combination of these necessary elements that represents an advance in the state of the art. Sensor localization is achieved by using a pair of mirror-ended optical fibers of different lengths that are mechanically coupled up until the desired gauge length for common-mode suppression has been reached. This fiber-optic sensor has been embedded in both thermoset (Kevlar/epoxy and graphite/epoxy) and thermoplastic (graphite/PEEK) composite materials in order to make local strain measurements at the lamina level. The all-fiber system uses a 3 x 3 coupler for phase demodulation. Parameters such as strain sensitivity, transverse strain sensitivity, failure strain, and frequency response are discussed, along with applications.

Nitrogen-Doped Diamond Film for Optical Investigation of Hemoglobin Concentration

PubMed Central

Majchrowicz, Daria; Kosowska, Monika; Struk, Przemysław; Sobaszek, Michał; Jędrzejewska-Szczerska, Małgorzata

2018-01-01

In this work we present the fabrication and characterization of a diamond film which can be utilized in the construction of optical sensors for the investigation of biological samples. We produced a nitrogen-doped diamond (NDD) film using a microwave plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (MWPECVD) system. The NDD film was investigated with the use of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and Raman spectroscopy. The NDD film was used in the construction of the fiber optic sensor. This sensor is based on the Fabry–Pérot interferometer working in a reflective mode and the NDD film is utilized as a reflective layer of this interferometer. Application of the NDD film allowed us to obtain the sensor of hemoglobin concentration with linear work characteristics with a correlation coefficient (R2) equal to 0.988. PMID:29324715

Optical Fiber Sensors for Aircraft Structural Health Monitoring

PubMed Central

García, Iker; Zubia, Joseba; Durana, Gaizka; Aldabaldetreku, Gotzon; Illarramendi, María Asunción; Villatoro, Joel

2015-01-01

Aircraft structures require periodic and scheduled inspection and maintenance operations due to their special operating conditions and the principles of design employed to develop them. Therefore, structural health monitoring has a great potential to reduce the costs related to these operations. Optical fiber sensors applied to the monitoring of aircraft structures provide some advantages over traditional sensors. Several practical applications for structures and engines we have been working on are reported in this article. Fiber Bragg gratings have been analyzed in detail, because they have proved to constitute the most promising technology in this field, and two different alternatives for strain measurements are also described. With regard to engine condition evaluation, we present some results obtained with a reflected intensity-modulated optical fiber sensor for tip clearance and tip timing measurements in a turbine assembled in a wind tunnel. PMID:26134107

Optical Fiber Sensors for Aircraft Structural Health Monitoring.

PubMed

García, Iker; Zubia, Joseba; Durana, Gaizka; Aldabaldetreku, Gotzon; Illarramendi, María Asunción; Villatoro, Joel

2015-06-30

Aircraft structures require periodic and scheduled inspection and maintenance operations due to their special operating conditions and the principles of design employed to develop them. Therefore, structural health monitoring has a great potential to reduce the costs related to these operations. Optical fiber sensors applied to the monitoring of aircraft structures provide some advantages over traditional sensors. Several practical applications for structures and engines we have been working on are reported in this article. Fiber Bragg gratings have been analyzed in detail, because they have proved to constitute the most promising technology in this field, and two different alternatives for strain measurements are also described. With regard to engine condition evaluation, we present some results obtained with a reflected intensity-modulated optical fiber sensor for tip clearance and tip timing measurements in a turbine assembled in a wind tunnel.

Feedback dew-point sensor utilizing optimally cut plastic optical fibres

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hadjiloucas, S.; Irvine, J.; Keating, D. A.

2000-01-01

A plastic optical fibre reflectance sensor that makes full use of the critical angle of the fibres is implemented to monitor dew formation on a Peltier-cooled reflector surface. The optical configuration permits isolation of optoelectronic components from the sensing head and better light coupling between the reflector and the detecting fibre, giving a better signal of the onset of dew formation on the reflector. Continuous monitoring of the rate of change in reflectance as well as the absolute reflectance signals, the use of a novel polymethyl-methacrylate-coated hydrophobic film reflector on the Peltier element and the application of feedback around the point of dew formation, further reduces the possibility of contamination of the sensor head. Under closed-loop operation, the sensor is capable of cycling around the point of dew formation at a frequency of 2.5 Hz.

Highly sensitive and selective liquid crystal optical sensor for detection of ammonia.

PubMed

Niu, Xiaofang; Zhong, Yuanbo; Chen, Rui; Wang, Fei; Luo, Dan

2017-06-12

Ammonia detection technologies are very important in environment monitoring. However, most existing technologies are complex and expensive, which limit the useful range of real-time application. Here, we propose a highly sensitive and selective optical sensor for detection of ammonia (NH 3 ) based on liquid crystals (LCs). This optical sensor is realized through the competitive binding between ammonia and liquid crystals on chitosan-Cu 2+ that decorated on glass substrate. We achieve a broad detection range of ammonia from 50 ppm to 1250 ppm, with a low detection limit of 16.6 ppm. This sensor is low-cost, simple, fast, and highly sensitive and selective for detection of ammonia. The proposal LC sensing method can be a sensitive detection platform for other molecule monitors such as proteins, DNAs and other heavy metal ions by modifying sensing molecules.

Optical ammonia gas sensor based on a porous silicon rugate filter coated with polymer-supported dye.

PubMed

Shang, Yunling; Wang, Xiaobo; Xu, Erchao; Tong, Changlun; Wu, Jianmin

2011-01-24

An ammonia gas sensor chip was prepared by coating an electrochemically-etched porous Si rugate filter with a chitosan film that is crosslinked by glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane (GPTMS). The bromothylmol blue (BTB), a pH indicator, was loaded in the film as ammonia-sensing molecules. White light reflected from the porous Si has a narrow bandwidth spectrum with a peak at 610 nm. Monitoring reflective optical intensity at the peak position allows for direct, real-time observation of changes in the concentration of ammonia gas in air samples. The reflective optical intensity decreased linearly with increasing concentrations of ammonia gas over the range of 0-100 ppm. The lowest detection limit was 0.5 ppm for ammonia gas. At optimum conditions, the full response time of the ammonia gas sensor was less than 15s. The sensor chip also exhibited a good long-term stability over 1 year. Therefore, the simple sensor design has potential application in miniaturized optical measurement for online ammonia gas detection. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Programmable logic controller optical fibre sensor interface module

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Allwood, Gary; Wild, Graham; Hinckley, Steven

2011-12-01

Most automated industrial processes use Distributed Control Systems (DCSs) or Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs) for automated control. PLCs tend to be more common as they have much of the functionality of DCSs, although they are generally cheaper to install and maintain. PLCs in conjunction with a human machine interface form the basis of Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems, combined with communication infrastructure and Remote Terminal Units (RTUs). RTU's basically convert different sensor measurands in to digital data that is sent back to the PLC or supervisory system. Optical fibre sensors are becoming more common in industrial processes because of their many advantageous properties. Being small, lightweight, highly sensitive, and immune to electromagnetic interference, means they are an ideal solution for a variety of diverse sensing applications. Here, we have developed a PLC Optical Fibre Sensor Interface Module (OFSIM), in which an optical fibre is connected directly to the OFSIM located next to the PLC. The embedded fibre Bragg grating sensors, are highly sensitive and can detect a number of different measurands such as temperature, pressure and strain without the need for a power supply.

High-precision micro-displacement optical-fiber sensor based on surface plasmon resonance.

PubMed

Zhu, Zongda; Liu, Lu; Liu, Zhihai; Zhang, Yu; Zhang, Yaxun

2017-05-15

We propose and demonstrate a novel optical-fiber micro-displacement sensor based on surface plasmon resonance (SPR) by fabricating a Kretschmann configuration on graded-index multimode fiber (GIMMF). We employ a single-mode fiber to change the radial position of the incident beam as the displacement. In the GIMMF, the angle between the light beam and fiber axis, which is closely related to the resonance angle, is changed by the displacement; thus, the resonance wavelength of the fiber SPR shifts. This micro-displacement fiber sensor has a wide detection range of 0-25 μm, a high sensitivity with maximum up to 10.32 nm/μm, and a nanometer resolution with minimum to 2 nm, which transcends almost all of other optical-fiber micro-displacement sensors. In addition, we also research that increasing the fiber polishing angle or medium refractive index can improve the sensitivity. This micro-displacement sensor will have a great significance in many industrial applications and provide a neoteric, rapid, and accurate optical measurement method in micro-displacement.

DNA based thin solid films and its application to optical fiber temperature sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hong, Seongjin; Jung, Woohyun; Kim, Taeoh; Oh, Kyunghwan

2017-04-01

Temperature dependent refractive index of DNA-cetyltrimethylammonium chloride (CTMA) thin-solid-film was measured 20 to 90° to obtain its thermo-optic coefficient of -3.6×10-4 (dn/dT). DNA- CTMA film has high thermosoptic coefficient than other polymers. The film was deposited on coreless silica fiber (CSF) to serve as a multimode interferometer optical fiber temperature sensor. It is immersed in a water that changed temperature from 40 to 90°. It has sensitivity of 0.25nm/℃.

A colorimetric turn-on optical chemosensor for Cu2+ ions and its application as solid state sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pannipara, Mehboobali; Al-Sehemi, Abdullah G.; Assiri, Mohammed; Kalam, Abul

2018-05-01

We report a novel coumarin based optical chemosensor (Probe 1) for the selective and sensitive detection of Cu2+ ions in aqueous medium. The addition of Cu2+ ions to Probe 1 shows distinct color change from light yellow to pinkish red color under visible light with the sensing limit of 1.54 μM. Moreover, practical utility of Probe 1 as solid state optical sensor (test paper, TLC plates) for sensing Cu2+ has been demonstrated by instantaneous "naked eye" response.

Fiber-Optical Sensors: Basics and Applications in Multiphase Reactors

PubMed Central

Li, Xiangyang; Yang, Chao; Yang, Shifang; Li, Guozheng

2012-01-01

This work presents a brief introduction on the basics of fiber-optical sensors and an overview focused on the applications to measurements in multiphase reactors. The most commonly principle utilized is laser back scattering, which is also the foundation for almost all current probes used in multiphase reactors. The fiber-optical probe techniques in two-phase reactors are more developed than those in three-phase reactors. There are many studies on the measurement of gas holdup using fiber-optical probes in three-phase fluidized beds, but negative interference of particles on probe function was less studied. The interactions between solids and probe tips were less studied because glass beads etc. were always used as the solid phase. The vision probes may be the most promising for simultaneous measurements of gas dispersion and solids suspension in three-phase reactors. Thus, the following techniques of the fiber-optical probes in multiphase reactors should be developed further: (1) online measuring techniques under nearly industrial operating conditions; (2) corresponding signal data processing techniques; (3) joint application with other measuring techniques.

Application of micro- and nanotechnologies for the fabrication of optical devices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ehrfeld, Wolfgang; Bauer, Hans-Dieter

1998-03-01

The development of micro-opto-electro-mechanical systems (MOEMS) and devices no longer focuses on feasibility studies and expensive demonstrators. On the contrary, fabrication of micro-optical components is already feeding dynamic markets with a large variety of products that are more or less on the verge of inexpensive mass production. A major application area for MOEMS is, without any doubt, tele- and datacommunications, while miniature optical sensors (e.g. spectrometers and interferometers) have a growing part in many kinds of biotechnological, chemical and pharmaceutical applications. In this presentation numerous examples for optical microstructures are given that range from the field of low cost fiberoptic components to polymer waveguide elements, from fiber switches to mass-producible microlenses made of thermoplastics or glass, and from microstructured photonic bandgap materials to optical sensor tips for investigating nanostructures. It is emphasized that for realizing MOEMS very different materials have to be processed while the necessary hybrid integration demands for specific automated assembly methods. In particular, the examples given show now microtechnologies can be adapted and combined with each other to take into account the special requirements of the product.

Hybrid Integrated Label-Free Chemical and Biological Sensors

PubMed Central

Mehrabani, Simin; Maker, Ashley J.; Armani, Andrea M.

2014-01-01

Label-free sensors based on electrical, mechanical and optical transduction methods have potential applications in numerous areas of society, ranging from healthcare to environmental monitoring. Initial research in the field focused on the development and optimization of various sensor platforms fabricated from a single material system, such as fiber-based optical sensors and silicon nanowire-based electrical sensors. However, more recent research efforts have explored designing sensors fabricated from multiple materials. For example, synthetic materials and/or biomaterials can also be added to the sensor to improve its response toward analytes of interest. By leveraging the properties of the different material systems, these hybrid sensing devices can have significantly improved performance over their single-material counterparts (better sensitivity, specificity, signal to noise, and/or detection limits). This review will briefly discuss some of the methods for creating these multi-material sensor platforms and the advances enabled by this design approach. PMID:24675757

Hybrid integrated label-free chemical and biological sensors.

PubMed

Mehrabani, Simin; Maker, Ashley J; Armani, Andrea M

2014-03-26

Label-free sensors based on electrical, mechanical and optical transduction methods have potential applications in numerous areas of society, ranging from healthcare to environmental monitoring. Initial research in the field focused on the development and optimization of various sensor platforms fabricated from a single material system, such as fiber-based optical sensors and silicon nanowire-based electrical sensors. However, more recent research efforts have explored designing sensors fabricated from multiple materials. For example, synthetic materials and/or biomaterials can also be added to the sensor to improve its response toward analytes of interest. By leveraging the properties of the different material systems, these hybrid sensing devices can have significantly improved performance over their single-material counterparts (better sensitivity, specificity, signal to noise, and/or detection limits). This review will briefly discuss some of the methods for creating these multi-material sensor platforms and the advances enabled by this design approach.

Study on RC beams using BOTDA(R)-FRP-OF technique

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

He, Jianping; Zhou, Zhi; Huang, Ying; Ou, Jinping

2008-03-01

Brillouin based fiber optic sensing turns to be a promising technology for Structural Health Monitoring (SHM). However, the bare optical fiber is too fragile to act as a practical sensor, so high durability and large range (large strain) Brillouin distributed sensors are in great needs in field applications. For this reason, high durable and large range optical fiber Brillouin Optical Time Domain Analysis sensors packaged by Fiber Reinforcement Polymer (FRP), named BOTDA(R)-FRP-OF, have been studied and developed. Besides, in order to study the large strain, crack and slip between the rebar and concrete in reinforced concrete (RC) beams using BOTDR(A) technique, two RC Beams installed with BOTDA(R)-FRP-OF sensors have been set up. And the damage characteristics of the RC beams were investigated by comparing the strain measured by the BOTDA(R)-FRP-OF sensors and the strain from traditional electric strain gauges. The test results show that the BOTDA(R)-FRP-OF sensor can effectively detect the damage (including crack and slip) characteristic of RC beam, and it is suitable for the long-term structural health monitoring on concrete structures such as bridge, big dam and so on.

An application of optical coherence tomography and a smart polymer gel to construct an enzyme-free sugar sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ouiganon, Sirirat; Thammakhet, Chongdee; Thavarungkul, Panote; Kanatharana, Proespichaya; Buranachai, Chittanon

2016-06-01

This work reports a novel enzyme-free sugar sensor development based on optical coherence tomography (OCT) and a 3-acrylamidophenylboronic acid-acrylamide copolymer gel that swells when it binds sugar molecules. Utilizing OCT to measure the gel swelling in the presence of glucose and fructose, selected as model targets, the sensor provided a linear range of 2.5-20.0 mM for glucose and 0.01-0.20 mM for fructose detections with a good sensitivity for both sugars under optimal conditions. With some further improvements, the sensor could be used in harsh conditions that are not suitable for enzyme-based sugar sensors and for highly visible light-absorbing solutions.

Standards and Procedures for Application of Radiometric Sensors

DTIC Science & Technology

2010-07-01

radiation from slowly oscillating electrons. Optical radiation is defined to be the narrow portion of the electromagnetic spectrum spanning five orders...809-10, July 2010 4-1 CHAPTER 4 PHOTOMETRY Radiometry is the science and the craft of measuring radiant power across the entire optical ...distances compared to its focal length (which is the most common application) the image of the source is at the focal distance of the optical system

Optical Sensors Based on Plastic Fibers

PubMed Central

Bilro, Lúcia; Alberto, Nélia; Pinto, João L.; Nogueira, Rogério

2012-01-01

The recent advances of polymer technology allowed the introduction of plastic optical fiber in sensor design. The advantages of optical metrology with plastic optical fiber have attracted the attention of the scientific community, as they allow the development of low-cost or cost competitive systems compared with conventional technologies. In this paper, the current state of the art of plastic optical fiber technology will be reviewed, namely its main characteristics and sensing advantages. Several measurement techniques will be described, with a strong focus on interrogation approaches based on intensity variation in transmission and reflection. The potential applications involving structural health monitoring, medicine, environment and the biological and chemical area are also presented. PMID:23112707

Terahertz adaptive optics with a deformable mirror.

PubMed

Brossard, Mathilde; Sauvage, Jean-François; Perrin, Mathias; Abraham, Emmanuel

2018-04-01

We report on the wavefront correction of a terahertz (THz) beam using adaptive optics, which requires both a wavefront sensor that is able to sense the optical aberrations, as well as a wavefront corrector. The wavefront sensor relies on a direct 2D electro-optic imaging system composed of a ZnTe crystal and a CMOS camera. By measuring the phase variation of the THz electric field in the crystal, we were able to minimize the geometrical aberrations of the beam, thanks to the action of a deformable mirror. This phase control will open the route to THz adaptive optics in order to optimize the THz beam quality for both practical and fundamental applications.

Real-time In-Flight Strain and Deflection Monitoring with Fiber Optic Sensors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Richards, Lance; Parker, Allen R.; Ko, William L.; Piazza, Anthony

2008-01-01

This viewgraph presentation reviews Dryden's efforts to develop in-flight monitoring based on Fiber Optics. One of the motivating factors for this development was the breakup of the Helios aircraft. On Ikhana the use of fiber optics for wing shape sensing is being developed. They are being used to flight validate fiber optic sensor measurements and real-time wing shape sensing predictions on NASA's Ikhana vehicle; validate fiber optic mathematical models and design tools; Assess technical viability and, if applicable, develop methodology and approach to incorporate wing shape measurements within the vehicle flight control system, and develop and flight validate advanced approaches to perform active wing shape control.

Distributed fiber optical sensing of oxygen with optical time domain reflectometry.

PubMed

Eich, Susanne; Schmälzlin, Elmar; Löhmannsröben, Hans-Gerd

2013-05-31

In many biological and environmental applications spatially resolved sensing of molecular oxygen is desirable. A powerful tool for distributed measurements is optical time domain reflectometry (OTDR) which is often used in the field of telecommunications. We combine this technique with a novel optical oxygen sensor dye, triangular-[4] phenylene (TP), immobilized in a polymer matrix. The TP luminescence decay time is 86 ns. The short decay time of the sensor dye is suitable to achieve a spatial resolution of some meters. In this paper we present the development and characterization of a reflectometer in the UV range of the electromagnetic spectrum as well as optical oxygen sensing with different fiber arrangements.

Distributed Fiber Optical Sensing of Oxygen with Optical Time Domain Reflectometry

PubMed Central

Eich, Susanne; Schmälzlin, Elmar; Löhmannsröben, Hans-Gerd

2013-01-01

In many biological and environmental applications spatially resolved sensing of molecular oxygen is desirable. A powerful tool for distributed measurements is optical time domain reflectometry (OTDR) which is often used in the field of telecommunications. We combine this technique with a novel optical oxygen sensor dye, triangular-[4] phenylene (TP), immobilized in a polymer matrix. The TP luminescence decay time is 86 ns. The short decay time of the sensor dye is suitable to achieve a spatial resolution of some meters. In this paper we present the development and characterization of a reflectometer in the UV range of the electromagnetic spectrum as well as optical oxygen sensing with different fiber arrangements. PMID:23727953

A Theoretical Study and Numerical Simulation of a Quasi-Distributed Sensor Based on the Low-Finesse Fabry-Perot Interferometer: Frequency-Division Multiplexing

PubMed Central

Guillen Bonilla, José Trinidad; Guillen Bonilla, Alex; Rodríguez Betancourtt, Verónica M.; Guillen Bonilla, Héctor; Casillas Zamora, Antonio

2017-01-01

The application of the sensor optical fibers in the areas of scientific instrumentation and industrial instrumentation is very attractive due to its numerous advantages. In the industry of civil engineering for example, quasi-distributed sensors made with optical fiber are used for reliable strain and temperature measurements. Here, a quasi-distributed sensor in the frequency domain is discussed. The sensor consists of a series of low-finesse Fabry-Perot interferometers where each Fabry-Perot interferometer acts as a local sensor. Fabry-Perot interferometers are formed by pairs of identical low reflective Bragg gratings imprinted in a single mode fiber. All interferometer sensors have different cavity length, provoking frequency-domain multiplexing. The optical signal represents the superposition of all interference patterns which can be decomposed using the Fourier transform. The frequency spectrum was analyzed and sensor’s properties were defined. Following that, a quasi-distributed sensor was numerically simulated. Our sensor simulation considers sensor properties, signal processing, noise system, and instrumentation. The numerical results show the behavior of resolution vs. signal-to-noise ratio. From our results, the Fabry-Perot sensor has high resolution and low resolution. Both resolutions are conceivable because the Fourier Domain Phase Analysis (FDPA) algorithm elaborates two evaluations of Bragg wavelength shift. PMID:28420083

Advanced Spatial-Division Multiplexed Measurement Systems Propositions—From Telecommunication to Sensing Applications: A Review

PubMed Central

Weng, Yi; Ip, Ezra; Pan, Zhongqi; Wang, Ting

2016-01-01

The concepts of spatial-division multiplexing (SDM) technology were first proposed in the telecommunications industry as an indispensable solution to reduce the cost-per-bit of optical fiber transmission. Recently, such spatial channels and modes have been applied in optical sensing applications where the returned echo is analyzed for the collection of essential environmental information. The key advantages of implementing SDM techniques in optical measurement systems include the multi-parameter discriminative capability and accuracy improvement. In this paper, to help readers without a telecommunication background better understand how the SDM-based sensing systems can be incorporated, the crucial components of SDM techniques, such as laser beam shaping, mode generation and conversion, multimode or multicore elements using special fibers and multiplexers are introduced, along with the recent developments in SDM amplifiers, opto-electronic sources and detection units of sensing systems. The examples of SDM-based sensing systems not only include Brillouin optical time-domain reflectometry or Brillouin optical time-domain analysis (BOTDR/BOTDA) using few-mode fibers (FMF) and the multicore fiber (MCF) based integrated fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors, but also involve the widely used components with their whole information used in the full multimode constructions, such as the whispering gallery modes for fiber profiling and chemical species measurements, the screw/twisted modes for examining water quality, as well as the optical beam shaping to improve cantilever deflection measurements. Besides, the various applications of SDM sensors, the cost efficiency issue, as well as how these complex mode multiplexing techniques might improve the standard fiber-optic sensor approaches using single-mode fibers (SMF) and photonic crystal fibers (PCF) have also been summarized. Finally, we conclude with a prospective outlook for the opportunities and challenges of SDM technologies in optical sensing industry. PMID:27589754

Advanced Spatial-Division Multiplexed Measurement Systems Propositions-From Telecommunication to Sensing Applications: A Review.

PubMed

Weng, Yi; Ip, Ezra; Pan, Zhongqi; Wang, Ting

2016-08-30

The concepts of spatial-division multiplexing (SDM) technology were first proposed in the telecommunications industry as an indispensable solution to reduce the cost-per-bit of optical fiber transmission. Recently, such spatial channels and modes have been applied in optical sensing applications where the returned echo is analyzed for the collection of essential environmental information. The key advantages of implementing SDM techniques in optical measurement systems include the multi-parameter discriminative capability and accuracy improvement. In this paper, to help readers without a telecommunication background better understand how the SDM-based sensing systems can be incorporated, the crucial components of SDM techniques, such as laser beam shaping, mode generation and conversion, multimode or multicore elements using special fibers and multiplexers are introduced, along with the recent developments in SDM amplifiers, opto-electronic sources and detection units of sensing systems. The examples of SDM-based sensing systems not only include Brillouin optical time-domain reflectometry or Brillouin optical time-domain analysis (BOTDR/BOTDA) using few-mode fibers (FMF) and the multicore fiber (MCF) based integrated fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors, but also involve the widely used components with their whole information used in the full multimode constructions, such as the whispering gallery modes for fiber profiling and chemical species measurements, the screw/twisted modes for examining water quality, as well as the optical beam shaping to improve cantilever deflection measurements. Besides, the various applications of SDM sensors, the cost efficiency issue, as well as how these complex mode multiplexing techniques might improve the standard fiber-optic sensor approaches using single-mode fibers (SMF) and photonic crystal fibers (PCF) have also been summarized. Finally, we conclude with a prospective outlook for the opportunities and challenges of SDM technologies in optical sensing industry.

Photonic Crystal Sensors Based on Porous Silicon

PubMed Central

Pacholski, Claudia

2013-01-01

Porous silicon has been established as an excellent sensing platform for the optical detection of hazardous chemicals and biomolecular interactions such as DNA hybridization, antigen/antibody binding, and enzymatic reactions. Its porous nature provides a high surface area within a small volume, which can be easily controlled by changing the pore sizes. As the porosity and consequently the refractive index of an etched porous silicon layer depends on the electrochemial etching conditions photonic crystals composed of multilayered porous silicon films with well-resolved and narrow optical reflectivity features can easily be obtained. The prominent optical response of the photonic crystal decreases the detection limit and therefore increases the sensitivity of porous silicon sensors in comparison to sensors utilizing Fabry-Pérot based optical transduction. Development of porous silicon photonic crystal sensors which allow for the detection of analytes by the naked eye using a simple color change or the fabrication of stacked porous silicon photonic crystals showing two distinct optical features which can be utilized for the discrimination of analytes emphasize its high application potential. PMID:23571671

Military Applications of Fiber Optics Technology

DTIC Science & Technology

1989-05-01

Research Projects Agency DNA Defense Nuclear Agency EMI Electromagnetic interference EMP Electromagnetic pulse FET Field effect transistor FOFA Follow...Organization SEED Self electro-optic effect device TBM Tactical ballistic missile TOW Tube launched, optically tracked, wire-guided UAV Unmanned aerial vehicle...systems, coupled with novel but effective transducing technology, have set the stage for a powerful class of fiber optic sensors. 8 Optical fibers have

Fabrication and Analysis Signal Optical Fiber Sensor Based On Bend Loss for Weight in Motion Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aftah Syukron, Ahmad; Marzuki, Ahmad; Setyawan, Ary

2017-11-01

Road network plays very important role in economic development. Overweight is one of the main factors contributing to road damage. To minimize this factor, road authority has to make sure that all vehicles operate in according to maximum vehicle regulation set by the government. The one solution can use from this problem is Weight in motion (WIM) technology. WIM technology allows measuring vehicle weight quickly. The sensor is one of the important components in the WIM system. This paper presents a model of WIM fiber sensor work based on bend loss. Fiber sensor has made by coiling optical fiber. Coiling optical fiber has managed in the elliptical shape rubber coil. Rubber coil then is planted in the pad of sensor. The principle of this sensor is a detecting of the shift light intensity output of optical fiber when the vehicles a passing through on fiber sensor. Loading was carried out using loaded truck model. Data was carried out with variations of load and load positions in the truck. The results can be concluded that the shift light intensity is greater with the more shift loads. The loader of the truck has also resulted in the greater loss. Loads in the truck distributed on the axles due to the position of loads.

Performance limitations of a white light extrinsic Fabry-Perot interferometric displacement sensor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moro, Erik A.; Todd, Michael D.; Puckett, Anthony D.

2012-06-01

Non-contacting interferometric fiber optic sensors offer a minimally invasive, high-accuracy means of measuring a structure's kinematic response to loading. The performance of interferometric sensors is often dictated by the technique employed for demodulating the kinematic measurand of interest from phase in the observed optical signal. In this paper a white-light extrinsic Fabry-Perot interferometer is implemented, offering robust displacement sensing performance. Displacement data is extracted from an estimate of the power spectral density, calculated from the interferometer's received optical power measured as a function of optical transmission frequency, and the sensor's performance is dictated by the details surrounding the implementation of this power spectral density estimation. One advantage of this particular type of interferometric sensor is that many of its control parameters (e.g., frequency range, frequency sampling density, sampling rate, etc.) may be chosen to so that the sensor satisfies application-specific performance needs in metrics such as bandwidth, axial displacement range, displacement resolution, and accuracy. A suite of user-controlled input values is investigated for estimating the spectrum of power versus wavelength data, and the relationships between performance metrics and input parameters are described in an effort to characterize the sensor's operational performance limitations. This work has been approved by Los Alamos National Laboratory for unlimited public release (LA-UR 12-01512).

A Fiber Bragg Grating Sensor for Radial Artery Pulse Waveform Measurement.

PubMed

Jia, Dagong; Chao, Jing; Li, Shuai; Zhang, Hongxia; Yan, Yingzhan; Liu, Tiegen; Sun, Ye

2018-04-01

In this paper, we report the design and experimental validation of a novel optical sensor for radial artery pulse measurement based on fiber Bragg grating (FBG) and lever amplification mechanism. Pulse waveform analysis is a diagnostic tool for clinical examination and disease diagnosis. High fidelity radial artery pulse waveform has been investigated in clinical studies for estimating central aortic pressure, which is proved to be predictors of cardiovascular diseases. As a three-dimensional cylinder, the radial artery needs to be examined from different locations to achieve optimal pulse waveform for estimation and diagnosis. The proposed optical sensing system is featured as high sensitivity and immunity to electromagnetic interference for multilocation radial artery pulse waveform measurement. The FBG sensor can achieve the sensitivity of 8.236 nm/N, which is comparable to a commonly used electrical sensor. This FBG-based system can provide high accurate measurement, and the key characteristic parameters can be then extracted from the raw signals for clinical applications. The detecting performance is validated through experiments guided by physicians. In the experimental validation, we applied this sensor to measure the pulse waveforms at various positions and depths of the radial artery in the wrist according to the diagnostic requirements. The results demonstrate the high feasibility of using optical systems for physiological measurement and using this FBG sensor for radial artery pulse waveform in clinical applications.

History of the Shack Hartmann wavefront sensor and its impact in ophthalmic optics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schwiegerling, Jim

2014-09-01

The Shack Hartmann wavefront sensor is a technology that was developed at the Optical Sciences Center at the University of Arizona in the late 1960s. It is a robust technique for measuring wavefront error that was originally developed for large telescopes to measure errors induced by atmospheric turbulence. The Shack Hartmann sensor has evolved to become a relatively common non-interferometric metrology tool in a variety of fields. Its broadest impact has been in the area of ophthalmic optics where it is used to measure ocular aberrations. The data the Shack Hartmann sensor provides enables custom LASIK treatments, often enhancing visual acuity beyond normal levels. In addition, the Shack Hartmann data coupled with adaptive optics systems enables unprecedented views of the retina. This paper traces the evolution of the technology from the early use of screen-type tests, to the incorporation of lenslet arrays and finally to one of its modern applications, measuring the human eye.

Atmospheric turbulence and sensor system effects on biometric algorithm performance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Espinola, Richard L.; Leonard, Kevin R.; Byrd, Kenneth A.; Potvin, Guy

2015-05-01

Biometric technologies composed of electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) sensor systems and advanced matching algorithms are being used in various force protection/security and tactical surveillance applications. To date, most of these sensor systems have been widely used in controlled conditions with varying success (e.g., short range, uniform illumination, cooperative subjects). However the limiting conditions of such systems have yet to be fully studied for long range applications and degraded imaging environments. Biometric technologies used for long range applications will invariably suffer from the effects of atmospheric turbulence degradation. Atmospheric turbulence causes blur, distortion and intensity fluctuations that can severely degrade image quality of electro-optic and thermal imaging systems and, for the case of biometrics technology, translate to poor matching algorithm performance. In this paper, we evaluate the effects of atmospheric turbulence and sensor resolution on biometric matching algorithm performance. We use a subset of the Facial Recognition Technology (FERET) database and a commercial algorithm to analyze facial recognition performance on turbulence degraded facial images. The goal of this work is to understand the feasibility of long-range facial recognition in degraded imaging conditions, and the utility of camera parameter trade studies to enable the design of the next generation biometrics sensor systems.

Fiber sensors for molecular detection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gu, Claire; Yang, Xuan; Zhang, Jin; Newhouse, Rebecca; Cao, Liangcai

2010-11-01

The demand on sensors for detecting chemical and biological agents is greater than ever before, including medical, environmental, food safety, military, and security applications. At present, most detection or sensing techniques tend to be either non-molecular specific, bulky, expensive, relatively inaccurate, or unable to provide real time data. Clearly, alternative sensing technologies are urgently needed. Recently, we have been working to develop a compact fiber optic surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) sensor system that integrates various novel ideas to achieve compactness, high sensitivity and consistency, molecular specificity, and automatic preliminary identification capabilities. The unique sensor architecture is expected to bring SERS sensors to practical applications due to a combination of 1) novel SERS substrates that provide the high sensitivity and consistency, molecular specificity, and applicability to a wide range of compounds; 2) a unique hollow core optical fiber probe with double SERS substrate structure that provides the compactness, reliability, low cost, and ease of sampling; and 3) an innovative matched spectral filter set that provides automatic preliminary molecule identification. In this paper, we will review the principle of operation and some of the important milestones of fiber SERS sensor development with emphasis on our recent work to integrate photonic crystal fiber SERS probes with a portable Raman spectrometer and to demonstrate a matched spectral filter for molecule identification.

Nanostructured Gas Sensors for Health Care: An Overview

PubMed Central

Kaushik, Ajeet; Kumar, Rajesh; Jayant, Rahul Dev; Nair, Madhavan

2015-01-01

Nanostructured platforms have been utilized for fabrication of small, sensitive and reliable gas sensing devices owing to high functionality, enhanced charge transport and electro-catalytic property. As a result of globalization, rapid, sensitive and selective detection of gases in environment is essential for health care and security. Nonmaterial such as metal, metal oxides, organic polymers, and organic-inorganic hybrid nanocomposites exhibit interesting optical, electrical, magnetic and molecular properties, and hence are found potential gas sensing materials. Morphological, electrical, and optical properties of such nanostructures can be tailored via controlling the precursor concentration and synthesis conditions resulting to achieve desired sensing. This review presents applications of nano-enabling gas sensors to detect gases for environment monitoring. The recent update, challenges, and future vision for commercial applications of such sensor are also described here. PMID:26491544

Modeling and Validation of Performance Limitations for the Optimal Design of Interferometric and Intensity-Modulated Fiber Optic Displacement Sensors

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Moro, Erik A.

Optical fiber sensors offer advantages over traditional electromechanical sensors, making them particularly well-suited for certain measurement applications. Generally speaking, optical fiber sensors respond to a desired measurand through modulation of an optical signal's intensity, phase, or wavelength. Practically, non-contacting fiber optic displacement sensors are limited to intensity-modulated and interferometric (or phase-modulated) methodologies. Intensity-modulated fiber optic displacement sensors relate target displacement to a power measurement. The simplest intensity-modulated sensor architectures are not robust to environmental and hardware fluctuations, since such variability may cause changes in the measured power level that falsely indicate target displacement. Differential intensity-modulated sensors have been implemented, offeringmore » robustness to such intensity fluctuations, and the speed of these sensors is limited only by the combined speed of the photodetection hardware and the data acquisition system (kHz-MHz). The primary disadvantages of intensity-modulated sensing are the relatively low accuracy (?m-mm for low-power sensors) and the lack of robustness, which consequently must be designed, often with great difficulty, into the sensor's architecture. White light interferometric displacement sensors, on the other hand, offer increased accuracy and robustness. Unlike their monochromatic-interferometer counterparts, white light interferometric sensors offer absolute, unambiguous displacement measurements over large displacement ranges (cm for low-power, 5 mW, sources), necessitating no initial calibration, and requiring no environmental or feedback control. The primary disadvantage of white light interferometric displacement sensors is that their utility in dynamic testing scenarios is limited, both by hardware bandwidth and by their inherent high-sensitivity to Doppler-effects. The decision of whether to use either an intensity-modulated interferometric sensor depends on an appropriate performance function (e.g., desired displacement range, accuracy, robustness, etc.). In this dissertation, the performance limitations of a bundled differential intensity-modulated displacement sensor are analyzed, where the bundling configuration has been designed to optimize performance. The performance limitations of a white light Fabry-Perot displacement sensor are also analyzed. Both these sensors are non-contacting, but they have access to different regions of the performance-space. Further, both these sensors have different degrees of sensitivity to experimental uncertainty. Made in conjunction with careful analysis, the decision of which sensor to deploy need not be an uninformed one.« less

Power system applications of fiber optic sensors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnston, A. R.; Jackson, S. P.; Kirkham, H.; Yeh, C.

1986-01-01

This document is a progress report of work done in 1985 on the Communications and Control for Electric Power Systems Project at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. These topics are covered: Electric Field Measurement, Fiber Optic Temperature Sensing, and Optical Power transfer. Work was done on the measurement of ac and dc electric fields. A prototype sensor for measuring alternating fields was made using a very simple electroscope approach. An electronic field mill sensor for dc fields was made using a fiber optic readout, so that the entire probe could be operated isolated from ground. There are several instances in which more precise knowledge of the temperature of electrical power apparatus would be useful. This report describes a number of methods whereby the distributed temperature profile can be obtained using a fiber optic sensor. The ability to energize electronics by means of an optical fiber has the advantage that electrical isolation is maintained at low cost. In order to accomplish this, it is necessary to convert the light energy into electrical form by means of photovoltaic cells. JPL has developed an array of PV cells in gallium arsenide specifically for this purpose. This work is described.

Micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) and agile lensing-based modules for communications, sensing and signal processing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reza, Syed Azer

This dissertation proposes the use of the emerging Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) and agile lensing optical device technologies to design novel and powerful signal conditioning and sensing modules for advanced applications in optical communications, physical parameter sensing and RF/optical signal processing. For example, these new module designs have experimentally demonstrated exceptional features such as stable loss broadband operations and high > 60 dB optical dynamic range signal filtering capabilities. The first part of the dissertation describes the design and demonstration of digital MEMS-based signal processing modules for communication systems and sensor networks using the TI DLP (Digital Light Processing) technology. Examples of such modules include optical power splitters, narrowband and broadband variable fiber optical attenuators, spectral shapers and filters. Compared to prior works, these all-digital designs have advantages of repeatability, accuracy, and reliability that are essential for advanced communications and sensor applications. The next part of the dissertation proposes, analyzes and demonstrates the use of analog opto-fluidic agile lensing technology for sensor networks and test and measurement systems. Novel optical module designs for distance sensing, liquid level sensing, three-dimensional object shape sensing and variable photonic delay lines are presented and experimentally demonstrated. Compared to prior art module designs, the proposed analog-mode modules have exceptional performances, particularly for extreme environments (e.g., caustic liquids) where the free-space agile beam-based sensor provide remote non-contact access for physical sensing operations. The dissertation also presents novel modules involving hybrid analog-digital photonic designs that make use of the different optical device technologies to deliver the best features of both analog and digital optical device operations and controls. Digital controls are achieved through the use of the digital MEMS technology and analog controls are realized by employing opto-fluidic agile lensing technology and acousto-optic technology. For example, variable fiber-optic attenuators and spectral filters are proposed using the hybrid design. Compared to prior art module designs, these hybrid designs provide a higher module dynamic range and increased resolution that are critical in various advanced system applications. In summary, the dissertation shows the added power of hybrid optical designs using both the digital and analog photonic signal processing versus just all-digital or all-analog module designs.

Optical printed circuit board (O-PCB) and VLSI photonic integrated circuits: visions, challenges, and progresses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, El-Hang; Lee, S. G.; O, B. H.; Park, S. G.; Noh, H. S.; Kim, K. H.; Song, S. H.

2006-09-01

A collective overview and review is presented on the original work conducted on the theory, design, fabrication, and in-tegration of micro/nano-scale optical wires and photonic devices for applications in a newly-conceived photonic systems called "optical printed circuit board" (O-PCBs) and "VLSI photonic integrated circuits" (VLSI-PIC). These are aimed for compact, high-speed, multi-functional, intelligent, light-weight, low-energy and environmentally friendly, low-cost, and high-volume applications to complement or surpass the capabilities of electrical PCBs (E-PCBs) and/or VLSI electronic integrated circuit (VLSI-IC) systems. These consist of 2-dimensional or 3-dimensional planar arrays of micro/nano-optical wires and circuits to perform the functions of all-optical sensing, storing, transporting, processing, switching, routing and distributing optical signals on flat modular boards or substrates. The integrated optical devices include micro/nano-scale waveguides, lasers, detectors, switches, sensors, directional couplers, multi-mode interference devices, ring-resonators, photonic crystal devices, plasmonic devices, and quantum devices, made of polymer, silicon and other semiconductor materials. For VLSI photonic integration, photonic crystals and plasmonic structures have been used. Scientific and technological issues concerning the processes of miniaturization, interconnection and integration of these systems as applicable to board-to-board, chip-to-chip, and intra-chip integration, are discussed along with applications for future computers, telecommunications, and sensor-systems. Visions and challenges toward these goals are also discussed.

Adaptive Optics for Industry and Medicine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dainty, Christopher

2008-01-01

pt. 1. Wavefront correctors and control. Liquid crystal lenses for correction of presbyopia (Invited Paper) / Guoqiang Li and Nasser Peyghambarian. Converging and diverging liquid crystal lenses (oral paper) / Andrew X. Kirby, Philip J. W. Hands, and Gordon D. Love. Liquid lens technology for miniature imaging systems: status of the technology, performance of existing products and future trends (invited paper) / Bruno Berge. Carbon fiber reinforced polymer deformable mirrors for high energy laser applications (oral paper) / S. R. Restaino ... [et al.]. Tiny multilayer deformable mirrors (oral paper) / Tatiana Cherezova ... [et al.]. Performance analysis of piezoelectric deformable mirrors (oral paper) / Oleg Soloviev, Mikhail Loktev and Gleb Vdovin. Deformable membrane mirror with high actuator density and distributed control (oral paper) / Roger Hamelinck ... [et al.]. Characterization and closed-loop demonstration of a novel electrostatic membrane mirror using COTS membranes (oral paper) / David Dayton ... [et al.]. Electrostatic micro-deformable mirror based on polymer materials (oral paper) / Frederic Zamkotsian ... [et al.]. Recent progress in CMOS integrated MEMS A0 mirror development (oral paper) / A. Gehner ... [et al.]. Compact large-stroke piston-tip-tilt actuator and mirror (oral paper) / W. Noell ... [et al.]. MEMS deformable mirrors for high performance AO applications (oral paper) / Paul Bierden, Thomas Bifano and Steven Cornelissen. A versatile interferometric test-rig for the investigation and evaluation of ophthalmic AO systems (poster paper) / Steve Gruppetta, Jiang Jian Zhong and Luis Diaz-Santana. Woofer-tweeter adaptive optics (poster paper) / Thomas Farrell and Chris Dainty. Deformable mirrors based on transversal piezoeffect (poster paper) / Gleb Vdovin, Mikhail Loktev and Oleg Soloviev. Low-cost spatial light modulators for ophthalmic applications (poster paper) / Vincente Durán ... [et al.]. Latest MEMS DM developments and the path ahead at Iris AO (poster paper) / Michael A. Helmbrecht ... [et al.]. Electrostatic push pull mirror improvernents in visual optics (poster paper) / S. Bonora and L. Poletto. 25cm bimorph mirror for petawatt laser / S. Bonora ... [et al.]. Hysteresis compensation for piezo deformable mirror (poster paper) / H. Song ... [et al.]. Static and dynamic responses of an adaptive optics ferrofluidic mirror (poster paper) / A. Seaman ... [et al.]. New HDTV (1920 x 1080) phase-only SLM (poster paper) / Stefan Osten and Sven Krueger. Monomorph large aperture deformable mirror for laser applications (poster paper) / J-C Sinquin, J-M Lurcon, C. Guillemard. Low cost, high speed for adaptive optics control (oral paper) / Christopher D. Saunter and Gordon D. Love. Open loop woofer-tweeter adaptive control on the LAO multi-conjugate adaptive optics testbed (oral paper) / Edward Laag, Don Gavel and Mark Ammons -- pt. 2. Wavefront sensors. Wave front sensorless adaptive optics for imaging and microscopy (invited paper) / Martin J. Booth, Delphine Débarre and Tony Wilson. A fundamental limit for wavefront sensing (oral paper) / Carl Paterson. Coherent fibre-bundle wavefront sensor (oral paper) / Brian Vohnsen, I. Iglesias and Pablo Artal. Maximum-likelihood methods in wave-front sensing: nuisance parameters (oral paper) / David Lara, Harrison H. Barrett, and Chris Dainty. Real-time wavefront sensing for ultrafast high-power laser beams (oral paper) / Juan M. Bueno ... [et al.]. Wavefront sensing using a random phase screen (oral paper) / M. Loktev, G. Vdovin and O. Soloviev. Quadri-Wave Lateral Shearing Interferometry: a new mature technique for wave front sensing in adaptive optics (oral paper) / Benoit Wattellier ... [et al.]. In vivo measurement of ocular aberrations with a distorted grating wavefront sensor (oral paper) / P. Harrison ... [et al.]. Position-sensitive detector designed with unusual CMOS layout strategies for a Hartman-Shack wavefront sensor (oral Paper) / Davies W. de Lima Monteiro ... [et al.]. Adaptive optics system to compensate complex-shaped wavefronts (oral paper) / Miguel Ares, and Santiago Royo. A kind of novel linear phase retrieval wavefront sensor and its application in close-loop adaptive optics system (oral paper) / Xinyang Li ... [et al.]. Ophthalmic Shack-Hatmann wavefront sensor applications (oral paper) / Daniel R. Neal. Wave front sensing of an optical vortex and its correction with the help of bimorph mirror (poster paper) / F. A. Starikov ... [et al.]. Recent advances in laser metrology and correction of high numerical aperture laser beams using quadri-wave lateral shearing-interferometry (poster paper) / Benoit Wattellier, Ivan Doudet and William Boucher. Thin film optical metrology using principles of wavefront sensing and interference (poster paper) / D. M. Faichnie, A. H. Greenaway and I. Bain. Direct diffractive image simulation (poster paper) / A. P. Maryasov, N. P. Maryasov, A. P. Layko. High speed smart CMOS sensor for adaptive optics (poster paper) / T. D. Raymond ... [et al.]. Traceable astigmatism measurements for wavefront sensors (poster paper) / S. R. G. Hall, S. D. Knox, R. F. Stevens -- pt. 3. Adaptive optics in vision science. Dual-conjugate adaptive optics instrument for wide-field retinal imaging (oral paper) / Jörgen Thaung, Mette-Owner Petersen and Zoran Popovic. Visual simulation using electromagnetic adaptive-optics (oral paper) / Laurent Vabre ... [et al.]. High-resolution field-of-view widening in human eye retina imaging (oral paper) / Alexander V. Dubinin, Tatyana Yu. Cherezova, Alexis V. Kudryashov. Psychophysical experiments on visual performance with an ocular adaptive optics system (oral paper) / E. Dalimier, J. C. Dainty and J. Barbur. Does the accommodative mechanism of the eye calibrate itself using aberration dynamics? (oral paper) / K. M. Hampson, S. S. Chin and E. A. H. Mallen. A study of field aberrations in the human eye (oral paper) / Alexander V. Goncharov ... [et al.]. Dual wavefront corrector ophthalmic adaptive optics: design and alignment (oral paper) / Alfredo Dubra and David Williams. High speed simultaneous SLO/OCT imaging of the human retina with adaptive optics (oral paper) / M. Pircher ... [et al.]. Characterization of an AO-OCT system (oral paper) / Julia W. Evans ... [et al.]. Adaptive optics optical coherence tomography for retina imaging (oral paper) / Guohua Shi ... [et al.]. Development, calibration and performance of an electromagnetic-mirror-based adaptive optics system for visual optics (oral paper) / Enrique Gambra ... [et al.]. Adaptive eye model (poster paper) / Sergey O. Galetskzy and Alexty V. Kudryashov. Adaptive optics system for retinal imaging based on a pyramid wavefront sensor (poster paper) / Sabine Chiesa ... [et al.]. Modeling of non-stationary dynamic ocular aberrations (poster paper) / Conor Leahy and Chris Dainty. High-order aberrations and accommodation of human eye (poster paper) / Lixia Xue ... [et al.]. Electromagnetic deformable mirror: experimental assessment and first ophthalmic applications (poster paper) / L. Vabre ... [et al.]. Correcting ocular aberrations in optical coherence tomography (poster paper) / Simon Tuohy ... [et al.] -- pt. 4. Adaptive optics in optical storage and microscopy. The application of liquid crystal aberration compensator for the optical disc systems (invited paper) / Masakazu Ogasawara. Commercialization of the adaptive scanning optical microscope (ASOM) (oral paper) / Benjamin Potsaid ... [et al.]. A practical implementation of adaptive optics for aberration compensation in optical microscopy (oral paper) / A. J. Wright ... [et al.]. Active focus locking in an optically sectioning microscope using adaptive optics (poster paper) / S. Poland, A. J. Wright, J. M. Girkin. Towards four dimensional particle tracking for biological applications / Heather I. Campbell ... [et al.]. Adaptive optics for microscopy (poster paper) / Xavier Levecq -- pt. 5. Adaptive optics in lasers. Improved beam quality of a high power Yb: YAG laser (oral paper) / Dennis G. Harris ... [et al.]. Intracavity adaptive optics optimization of an end-pumped Nd:YVO4 laser (oral paper) / Petra Welp, Ulrich Wittrock. New results in high power lasers beam correction (oral paper) / Alexis Kudryashov ... [et al.]. Adaptive optical systems for the Shenguang-III prototype facility (oral paper) / Zeping Yang ... [et al.]. Adaptive optics control of solid-state lasers (poster paper) / Walter Lubeigt ... [et al.]. Gerchberg-Saxton algorithm for multimode beam reshaping (poster paper) / Inna V. Ilyina, Tatyana Yu. Cherezova. New algorithm of combining for spatial coherent beams (poster paper) / Ruofu Yang ... [et al.]. Intracavity mode control of a solid-state laser using a 19-element deformable mirror (poster paper) / Ping Yang ... [et al.] -- pt. 6. Adaptive optics in communication and atmospheric compensation. Fourier image sharpness sensor for laser communications (oral paper) / Kristin N. Walker and Robert K. Tyson. Fast closed-loop adaptive optics system for imaging through strong turbulence layers (oral paper) / Ivo Buske and Wolfgang Riede. Correction of wavefront aberrations and optical communication using aperture synthesis (oral paper) / R. J. Eastwood ... [et al.]. Adaptive optics system for a small telescope (oral paper) / G. Vdovin, M. Loktev and O. Soloviev. Fast correction of atmospheric turbulence using a membrane deformable mirror (poster paper) / Ivan Capraro, Stefano Bonora, Paolo Villoresi. Atmospheric turbulence measurements over a 3km horizontal path with a Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor (poster paper) / Ruth Mackey, K. Murphy and Chris Dainty. Field-oriented wavefront sensor for laser guide stars (poster paper) / Lidija Bolbasova, Alexander Goncharov and Vladimir Lukin.

Fiber optic cryogenic sensors for superconducting magnets and superconducting power transmission lines at CERN

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chiuchiolo, A.; Bajko, M.; Perez, J. C.; Bajas, H.; Consales, M.; Giordano, M.; Breglio, G.; Palmieri, L.; Cusano, A.

2014-08-01

The design, fabrication and tests of a new generation of superconducting magnets for the upgrade of the LHC require the support of an adequate, robust and reliable sensing technology. The use of Fiber Optic Sensors is becoming particularly challenging for applications in extreme harsh environments such as ultra-low temperatures, high electromagnetic fields and strong mechanical stresses offering perspectives for the development of technological innovations in several applied disciplines.

Integrated optics ring-resonator chemical sensor with polymer transduction layer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ksendzov, A.; Homer, M. L.; Manfreda, A. M.

2004-01-01

An integrated optics chemical sensor based on a ring resonator with an ethyl cellulose polymer coating has been demonstrated. The measured sensitivity to isopropanol in air is 50 ppm-the level immediately useful for health-related air quality monitoring. The resonator was fabricated using SiO2 and SixNy materials. The signal readout is based on tracking the wavelength of a resonance peak. The resonator layout optimisation for sensing applications is discussed.

Development of new dyes for use in integrated optical sensors.

PubMed

Citterio, D; Rásonyi, S; Spichiger, U E

1996-03-01

New chromoionophores have been developed, focused on NIR applications so that optode membranes may be used in monolithically integrated optical sensors. The wavelength of maximum absorbance has been estimated for a new model compound by the Pariser-Parr-Pople (PPP) method. Several cyanine type dyes have been tested as membrane chromoionophores. Membrane composition has been altered to overcome solubility problems. In this way, simple pH-sensitive optode membranes have been produced.

Plastic optical fibre sensor for in-vivo radiation monitoring during brachytherapy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Woulfe, P.; Sullivan, F. J.; Lewis, E.; O'Keeffe, S.

2015-09-01

An optical fibre sensor is presented for applications in real-time in-vivo monitoring of the radiation dose a cancer patient receives during seed implantation in Brachytherapy. The sensor is based on radioluminescence whereby radiation sensitive scintillation material is embedded in the core of a 1mm plastic optical fibre. Three scintillation materials are investigated: thallium-doped caesium iodide (CsI:Tl), terbium-doped gadolinium oxysulphide (Gd2O2S:Tb) and europium-doped lanthanum oxysulphide (La2O2S:Eu). Terbium-doped gadolinium oxysulphide was identified as being the most suitable scintillator and further testing demonstrates its measureable response to different activities of Iodine-125, the radio-active source commonly used in Brachytherapy for treating prostate cancer.

Extrinsic optical-fiber ultrasound sensor using a thin polymer film as a low-finesse Fabry-Perot interferometer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beard, P. C.; Mills, T. N.

1996-02-01

Theoretical and experimental aspects of an extrinsic optical-fiber ultrasound sensor are described. The sensor is based on a thin transparent polymer film acting as a low-finesse Fabry-Perot cavity that is mounted at the end of a multimode optical fiber. Performance was found to be comparable with that of a piezoelectric polyvinylidene difluoride-membrane (PVDF) hydrophone with a sensitivity of 61 mV/MPa, an acoustic noise floor of 2.3 KPa over a 25-MHz bandwidth, and a frequency response to 25 MHz. The wideband-sensitive response and design flexibility of the concept suggests that it may find application as an alternative to piezoelectric devices for the detection and measurement of ultrasound.

Luminescence materials for pH and oxygen sensing in microbial cells - structures, optical properties, and biological applications.

PubMed

Zou, Xianshao; Pan, Tingting; Chen, Lei; Tian, Yanqing; Zhang, Weiwen

2017-09-01

Luminescence including fluorescence and phosphorescence sensors have been demonstrated to be important for studying cell metabolism, and diagnosing diseases and cancer. Various design principles have been employed for the development of sensors in different formats, such as organic molecules, polymers, polymeric hydrogels, and nanoparticles. The integration of the sensing with fluorescence imaging provides valuable tools for biomedical research and applications at not only bulk-cell level but also at single-cell level. In this article, we critically reviewed recent progresses on pH, oxygen, and dual pH and oxygen sensors specifically for their application in microbial cells. In addition, we focused not only on sensor materials with different chemical structures, but also on design and applications of sensors for better understanding cellular metabolism of microbial cells. Finally, we also provided an outlook for future materials design and key challenges in reaching broad applications in microbial cells.

Bio-optical sensor for brain activity measurement based on whispering gallery modes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ali, Amir R.; Massoud, Yasmin M.

2017-05-01

In this paper, a high-resolution bio-optical sensor is developed for brain activity measurement. The aim is to develop an optical sensor with enough sensitivity to detect small electric field perturbations caused by neuronal action potential. The sensing element is a polymeric dielectric micro-resonator fabricated in a spherical shape with a few hundred microns in diameter. They are made of optical quality polymers that are soft which make them mechanically compatible with tissue. The sensors are attached to or embedded in optical fibers which serve as input/output conduits for the sensors. Hundreds or even thousands of spheres can be attached to a single fiber to detect and transmit signals at different locations. The high quality factor for the optical resonator makes it significantly used in such bio-medical applications. The sensing phenomenon is based on whispering gallery modes (WGM) shifts of the optical sensor. To mimic the brain signals, the spherical resonator is immersed in a homogeneous electrical field that is created by applying potential difference across two metallic plates. One of the plates has a variable voltage while the volt on the other plate kept fixed. Any small perturbations of the potential difference (voltage) lead to change in the electric field intensity. In turn the sensor morphology will be affected due to the change in the electrostriction force acting on it causing change in its WGM. By tracking these WGM shift on the transmission spectrum, the induced potential difference (voltage change) could be measured. Results of a mathematical model simulation agree well with the preliminary experiments. Also, the results show that the brain activity could be measured using this principle.

A comparative study of MOEM pressure sensors using MZI, DC, and racetrack resonator IO structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Selvarajan, A.; Pattnaik, Prasant Kumar; Badrinarayana, T.; Srinivas, T.

2006-03-01

In recent years micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) sensors have drawn considerable attention due to their attraction in terms of miniaturization, batch fabrication and ease of integration with the required electronics circuitry. Micro-opto-electro-mechanical (MOEM) devices and systems, based on the principles of integrated optics and micromachining technology on silicon have immense potential for sensor applications. Employing optical techniques have important advantages such as functionality, large bandwidth and higher sensitivity. Pressure sensing is currently the most lucrative market for solid-state micro sensors. Pressure sensing using micromachined structures utilize the changes induced in either the resistive or capacitive properties of the electro-mechanical structure by the impressed pressure. Integrated optical pressure sensors can utilize the changes to the amplitude, phase, refractive index profile, optical path length, or polarization of the lightwave by the external pressure. In this paper we compare the performance characteristics of three types of MOEM pressure sensors based on Mach-Zehnder Interferometer (MZI), Directional Coupler (DC) and racetrack resonator (RR) integrated optical geometries. The first two configurations measure the pressure changes through a change in optical intensity while the third one measures the same in terms of frequency or wavelength change. The analysis of each sensors has been carried out in terms of mechanical and optical models and their interrelationship through optomechanical coupling. For a typical diaphragm of size 2mm × 1mm × 20 μm, normalized pressure sensitivity of 18.35 μW/mW/kPa, 29.37 μW/mW/kPa and 2.26 pm/kPa in case of MZI, DC and RR devices have been obtained respectively. The noise performance of these devices are also presented.