Identical dual-wavelength fiber Bragg Gratings

In this paper, identical dual-wavelength fiber Bragg, gratings (FBGs) are theoretically proposed and experimentally demonstrated. On the assistance of the Fourier theory, the gratings with symmetrical spectrum are designed in the case of weak refractive-index modulations. With the. perturbation technique, the results achieved in the previous step are modified to meet the strong refractive-index modulation gratings. Based on the coupled-mode theory, we have optimized and achieved the identical dual-wavelength FBGs with two channels that have equal bandwidth and even strength. We have also experimentally demonstrated the proposed FBGs, and the experimental results are compared with theoretical predictions with good agreement.

Chirped fiber Bragg gratings for optical fiber dispersion compensation

The use of alpha-power chirped fiber Bragg gratings for dispersion cancellation in an optical fiber link is discussed. Numerical and theoretical investigation of recompressing the dispersion-broadened pulse by using alpha-power chirped gratings is made, which shows that, the dispersion-broadened Gaussian pulse after 100 km standard fiber (with zero dispersion at lambda = 1.3 mu m) trnasmission at lambda = 1.55 mu m with initial width of T-FWHM = 33ps (full width at half maximum) can be perfectly recompressed with the peak reflectivity of 82% by using a 30 mm long alpha-power chirped fiber grating with proper a value and optimal grating parameters.

Characterization of integrated Bragg gratings in silicon-on-insulator

Silicon-on-insulator (SOI) is rapidly emerging as a very promising material platform for integrated photonics. As it combines the potential for optoelectronic integration with the low-cost and large volume manufacturing capabilities and they are already accumulate a huge amount of applications in areas like sensing, quantum optics, optical telecommunications and metrology. One of the main limitations of current technology is that waveguide propagation losses are still much higher than in standard glass-based platform because of many reasons such as bends, surface roughness and the very strong optical confinement provided by SOI. Such high loss prevents the fabrication of efficient optical resonators and complex devices severely limiting the current potential of the SOI platform. The project in the first part deals with the simple waveguides loss problem and trying to link that with the polarization problem and the loss based on Fabry-Perot Technique. The second part of the thesis deals with the Bragg Grating characterization from again the point of view of the polarization effect which leads to a better stop-band use filters. To a better comprehension a brief review on the basics of the SOI and the integrated Bragg grating ends up with the fabrication techniques and some of its applications will be presented in both parts, until the end of both the third and the fourth chapters to some results which hopefully make its precedent explanations easier to deal with.

Packaging and testing of fiber Bragg gratings for use as strain sensor for rock specimens

This paper reports a packaging and calibration procedure for surface mounting of fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors to measure strain in rocks. The packaging of FBG sensors is performed with glass fiber and polyester resin, and then subjected to tensile loads in order to obtain strength and deformability parameters, necessaries to assess the mechanical performance of the sensor packaging. For a specific package, an optimal curing condition has been found, showing good repeatability and adaptability for non-planar surfaces, such as occurs in rock engineering. The successfully packaged sensors and electrical strain gages were attached to standard rock specimens of gabbro. Longitudinal and transversal strains under compression loads were measured with both techniques, showing that response of FBG sensors is linear and reliable. An analytical model is used to characterize the influences of rock substrate and FBG packaging in strain transmission. As a result, we obtained a sensor packaging for non-planar and complex natural material under acceptable sensitivity suitable for very small strains as occurs in hard rocks.

Extended-range, low coherence dual wavelength interferometry using a superfluorescent fibre source and chirped fibre Bragg gratings

We describe an all-fibre, passive scheme for making extended range interferometric measurements based on the dual wavelength technique. The coherence tuned interferometer network is illuminated with a single superfluorescent fibre source at 1.55 µm and the two wavelengths are synthesised at the output by means of chirped fibre Bragg gratings. We demonstrate an unambiguous sensing range of 270 µm, with a dynamic range of 2.7 × 10 5.

Synchronized mode-locked erbium fibre lasers with intracavity dispersion control using chirped in-fibre Bragg gratings

We demonstrate a dual-wavelength fibre laser system using chirped fibre Bragg gratings as reflectors and dispersive elements. The system produces two synchronized trains of soliton pulses with rms jitter of 620 fs.

Environmentally stable high-power soliton fiber lasers that use chirped fiber Bragg gratings

Environmentally stable high-power erbium fiber soliton lasers are constructed by Kerr or carrier-type mode locking. We obtain high-energy pulses by using relatively short fiber lengths and providing large amounts of negative dispersion with chirped fiber Bragg gratings. The pulse energies and widths generated with both types of soliton laser are found to scale with the square root of the cavity dispersion. Kerr mode locking requires pulses with an approximately three times higher nonlinear phase shift in the cavity than carrier mode locking, which leads to the generation of slightly shorter pulses with as much as seven times higher pulse energies at the mode-locking threshold.

In-fibre directional transverse loading sensor based on excessively tilted fibre Bragg gratings

We report a distinctive polarization mode coupling behaviour of tilted fibre Bragg gratings (TFBGs) with a tilted angle exceeding 45°. The ex-45° TFBGs exhibit pronounced polarization mode splitting resulted from the birefringence induced by the grating structure asymmetry. We have fabricated TFBGs with a tilted structure at 81° and studied their properties under transverse load applied to their equivalent fast and slow axes. The results show that the light coupling to the orthogonally polarized modes of the 81°-TFBGs changes only when the load is applied to their slow axis, giving a prominent directional loading response. For the view of real applications, we further investigated the possibility of interrogating such a TFBG-based load sensor using low-cost and compact-size single wavelength source and power detector. The experimental results clearly show that the 81°-TFBGs plus the proposed power-measurement interrogation scheme may be developed to an optical fibre vector sensor system capable of not just measuring the magnitude but also recognizing the direction of the applied transverse load. Using such an 81°-TFBG based load sensor, a load change as small as 1.6 × 10-2 g may be detected by employing a standard photodiode detector.

Novel optical chemsonsor based on etched D-fiber bragg gratings

A novel optical chemsensor concept based on the cladding etched Bragg gratings in D-fiber is demonstrated. Two etched devices have been used to measure the concentrations of sugar solution, giving sensitivity as high as 0.02nm/%.

Ultrasonic field and temperature sensor based on short in-fibre Bragg gratings

The authors demonstrate that in-fibre Bragg gratings may be successfully used to measure megahertz acoustic fields if the grating length is sufficiently short and the optical fibre is appropriately desensitised. A noise-limited pressure resolution of 4.5 × 10 –3 atm vHz was found. The capability to simultaneously act as a temperature sensor is also demonstrated.

High-sensitivity optical chemsensor based on etched D-fibre Bragg gratings

A novel and simple optical chemsensor concept based on cladding etched Bragg gratings UV-inscribed in D-fibre is reported. The sensitisation process of the Bragg structure to the refractive index of surrounding-medium under HF-etching has been investigated. Two etched devices were used to measure the concentrations of sugar solution, giving sensitivity as high as 0.02 nm/%.

Continuous-wave ultraviolet light induced fiber Bragg gratings in few- and single-mode microstructured polymer optical fibers

Reported are observations and measurements of the inscription of fibre Bragg gratings in two different types of microstructured polymer optical fibre: few-moded and endlessly single mode. Contrary to FBG inscription in silica microstructured fibre, where high energy laser pulses are a prerequisite, we have successfully used a low power CW laser source operating at 325nm to produce 1-cm long gratings with a reflection peak at 1570 nm. Peak reflectivities of more than 10% have been observed.

Design and fabrication of fibre Bragg gratings with V-shaped dispersion profile for multi-channel signal processing

We have designed and fabricated a new type of fibre Bragg grating (FBG) with a V-shaped dispersion profile for multi-channel dispersion compensation in communication links.