Fiber Optic Load Cells with Enhanced Sensitivity by Optical Vernier Effect

Developing technologies capable of constantly assessing and optimizing day-to-day activities has been a research priority for several years. A key factor in such technologies is the use of highly sensitive sensors to monitor in real-time numerous parameters, such as temperature and load. Due to their unique features, optical fiber sensors became one of the most interesting and viable solutions for applications dependent on those parameters. In this work, we present an optical fiber load sensor, called load cell, based on Fabry–Pérot hollow cavities embedded in a polymeric material. By using the load cells in a parallel configuration with a non-embedded hollow cavity, the optical Vernier effect was generated, allowing maximum sensitivity values of 0.433 nm N−1 and 0.66 nm °C−1 to be attained for vertical load and temperature, respectively. The proposed sensor’s performance, allied with the proposed configuration, makes it a viable and suitable device for a wide range of applications, namely those requiring high thermal and load sensitivities.

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Vernier effect using in-line highly coupled multicore fibers

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-97646-0 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Natanael Cuando-Espitia ◽

Miguel A. Fuentes-Fuentes ◽

Amado Velázquez-Benítez ◽

Rodrigo Amezcua ◽

Juan Hernández-Cordero ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Optical Fibers ◽

Single Mode ◽

Fold Increase ◽

Reflection And Transmission ◽

Fiber Sensors ◽

Enhanced Sensitivity ◽

Highly Sensitive ◽

Vernier Effect ◽

Ideal Framework ◽

Multicore Fiber

AbstractWe demonstrate optical fiber sensors based on highly coupled multicore fibers operating with the optical Vernier effect. The sensors are constructed using a simple device incorporating single-mode fibers (SMFs) and a segment of a multicore fiber. In particular, we evaluated the performance of a sensor based on a seven-core fiber (SCF) spliced at both ends to conventional SMFs, yielding a versatile arrangement for realizing Vernier-based fiber sensors. The SMF–SCF–SMF device can be fabricated using standard splicing procedures and serve as a “building block” for both, reflection and transmission sensing configurations. As demonstrated with our experimental results, the Vernier arrangements can yield a ten-fold increase in sensitivity for temperature measurements compared to a conventional single SMF–SCF–SMF device, thereby confirming the enhanced sensitivity that can be attained with this optical effect. Furthermore, through theoretical analysis, we obtain the relevant parameters that must be optimized in order to achieve an optimal sensitivity for a specific application. Our findings thus provide the necessary guidelines for constructing Vernier-based sensors with all-fiber devices based on highly coupled multicore optical fibers, which constitutes an ideal framework to develop highly sensitive fiber sensors for different applications.

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A highly sensitive optical fiber temperature sensor based on the enhanced Vernier effect

Optical Fiber Technology ◽

10.1016/j.yofte.2021.102702 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 67 ◽

pp. 102702

Author(s):

Weidong Luo ◽

Zhigang Cao ◽

Guosheng Zhang ◽

Fanyu Liu ◽

Bin Liu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Optical Fiber ◽

Temperature Sensor ◽

Highly Sensitive ◽

Vernier Effect

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Highly Sensitive Extrinsic X-Ray Polymer Optical Fiber Sensors Based on Fiber Tip Modification

IEEE Sensors Journal ◽

10.1109/jsen.2017.2721105 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 17 (16) ◽

pp. 5112-5117 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Ana I. de Andres ◽

Sinead O'Keeffe ◽

Lingxia Chen ◽

Oscar Esteban

Keyword(s):

Optical Fiber ◽

Optical Fiber Sensors ◽

Polymer Optical Fiber ◽

Fiber Sensors ◽

X Ray ◽

Highly Sensitive

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Carbon Allotrope-Based Optical Fibers for Environmental and Biological Sensing: A Review

Sensors ◽

10.3390/s20072046 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 20 (7) ◽

pp. 2046 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Stephanie Hui Kit Yap ◽

Kok Ken Chan ◽

Swee Chuan Tjin ◽

Ken-Tye Yong

Keyword(s):

Optical Fiber ◽

Optical Fibers ◽

High Sensitivity ◽

Optical Fiber Sensors ◽

Functional Coating ◽

Fiber Sensors ◽

Carbon Allotrope ◽

Carbon Allotropes ◽

Sensing Technology ◽

Wide Range

Recently, carbon allotropes have received tremendous research interest and paved a new avenue for optical fiber sensing technology. Carbon allotropes exhibit unique sensing properties such as large surface to volume ratios, biocompatibility, and they can serve as molecule enrichers. Meanwhile, optical fibers possess a high degree of surface modification versatility that enables the incorporation of carbon allotropes as the functional coating for a wide range of detection tasks. Moreover, the combination of carbon allotropes and optical fibers also yields high sensitivity and specificity to monitor target molecules in the vicinity of the nanocoating surface. In this review, the development of carbon allotropes-based optical fiber sensors is studied. The first section provides an overview of four different types of carbon allotropes, including carbon nanotubes, carbon dots, graphene, and nanodiamonds. The second section discusses the synthesis approaches used to prepare these carbon allotropes, followed by some deposition techniques to functionalize the surface of the optical fiber, and the associated sensing mechanisms. Numerous applications that have benefitted from carbon allotrope-based optical fiber sensors such as temperature, strain, volatile organic compounds and biosensing applications are reviewed and summarized. Finally, a concluding section highlighting the technological deficiencies, challenges, and suggestions to overcome them is presented.

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Plasmonic optical fiber sensors: enhanced sensitivity in water-based environments

Applied Optics ◽

10.1364/ao.54.008192 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 54 (27) ◽

pp. 8192 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Bárbara Rutyna Heidemann ◽

Ismael Chiamenti ◽

Marcela Mohallem Oliveira ◽

Marcia Muller ◽

José Luís Fabris

Keyword(s):

Optical Fiber ◽

Optical Fiber Sensors ◽

Fiber Sensors ◽

Enhanced Sensitivity ◽

Water Based

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Highly sensitive tapered optical fiber coupler-based gas refractive index sensor enhanced by the Vernier effect

Optical Engineering ◽

10.1117/1.oe.59.6.066102 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 59 (06) ◽

pp. 1

Author(s):

Jinqing Hao ◽

Bingchen Han

Keyword(s):

Refractive Index ◽

Optical Fiber ◽

Refractive Index Sensor ◽

Optical Fiber Coupler ◽

Fiber Coupler ◽

Highly Sensitive ◽

Tapered Optical Fiber ◽

Vernier Effect

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Fiber Optic Gas Sensors Based on Lossy Mode Resonances and Sensing Materials Used Therefor: A Comprehensive Review

Sensors ◽

10.3390/s21030731 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (3) ◽

pp. 731

Author(s):

Ignacio Vitoria ◽

Carlos Ruiz Zamarreño ◽

Aritz Ozcariz ◽

Ignacio R. Matias

Keyword(s):

Optical Fiber ◽

Gas Sensors ◽

Gas Sensing ◽

Optical Fiber Sensors ◽

Industrial Sector ◽

Fiber Sensors ◽

Sensing Applications ◽

Wide Range ◽

Materials Used ◽

Diagnostic Applications

Pollution in cities induces harmful effects on human health, which continuously increases the global demand of gas sensors for air quality control and monitoring. In the same manner, the industrial sector requests new gas sensors for their productive processes. Moreover, the association between exhaled gases and a wide range of diseases or health conditions opens the door for new diagnostic applications. The large number of applications for gas sensors has permitted the development of multiple sensing technologies. Among them, optical fiber gas sensors enable their utilization in remote locations, confined spaces or hostile environments as well as corrosive or explosive atmospheres. Particularly, Lossy Mode Resonance (LMR)-based optical fiber sensors employ the traditional metal oxides used for gas sensing purposes for the generation of the resonances. Some research has been conducted on the development of LMR-based optical fiber gas sensors; however, they have not been fully exploited yet and offer optimal possibilities for improvement. This review gives the reader a complete overview of the works focused on the utilization of LMR-based optical fiber sensors for gas sensing applications, summarizing the materials used for the development of these sensors as well as the fabrication procedures and the performance of these devices.

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An Ultra-Sensitive Multi-Functional Optical Micro/Nanofiber Based on Stretchable Encapsulation

Sensors ◽

10.3390/s21227437 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (22) ◽

pp. 7437

Author(s):

Siheng Xiang ◽

Hui You ◽

Xinxiang Miao ◽

Longfei Niu ◽

Caizhen Yao ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Health Monitoring ◽

Optical Sensors ◽

High Sensitivity ◽

Gauge Factor ◽

Practical Application ◽

Fiber Sensors ◽

Highly Sensitive ◽

Wide Range ◽

Peak Sensitivity ◽

Robust Sensing

Stretchable optical fiber sensors (SOFSs), which are promising and ultra-sensitive next-generation sensors, have achieved prominent success in applications including health monitoring, robotics, and biological–electronic interfaces. Here, we report an ultra-sensitive multi-functional optical micro/nanofiber embedded with a flexible polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) membrane, which is compatible with wearable optical sensors. Based on the effect of a strong evanescent field, the as-fabricated SOFS is highly sensitive to strain, achieving high sensitivity with a peak gauge factor of 450. In addition, considering the large negative thermo-optic coefficient of PDMS, temperature measurements in the range of 30 to 60 °C were realized, resulting in a 0.02 dBm/°C response. In addition, wide-range detection of humidity was demonstrated by a peak sensitivity of 0.5 dB/% RH, with less than 10% variation at each humidity stage. The robust sensing performance, together with the flexibility, enables the real-time monitoring of pulse, body temperature, and respiration. This as-fabricated SOFS provides significant potential for the practical application of wearable healthcare sensors.

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