Frequency modulated continuous wave system for optical fiber intensity sensors with optical amplification

Abstract

We report on the use of erbium doped fiber (EDF) amplification to enhance a frequency modulated continuous wave (FMCW) technique for referencing optical intensity sensors located between two Bragg grating structures. The experiment combines the concept of FMCW with the spectrally selective mirror properties of Bragg gratings to interrogate with referencing properties intensity based sensors. The interrogation system without amplification yields a sensor resolution of around 0.078 dB. When the EDF amplifier is introduced into the experimental set up, the sensor sensitivity does not change, but the signal-to-noise ratio is improved, resulting into an enhanced resolution of 0.025 dB. We also obtain a remote sensing operation at a location of 50 km, showing the feasibility of this configuration to be used as a remote sensing application.