High-sensitivity fiber optic temperature sensor based on CTFBG-FPI and Vernier effect

Abstract

A novel high-sensitivity temperature sensor based on a chirped thin-core fiber Bragg grating Fabry–Perot interferometer (CTFBG-FPI) and the Vernier effect is proposed and demonstrated. With femtosecond laser direct writing technology, two CTFBG-FPIs with different interferometric cavity lengths are inscribed inside a thin-core fiber to form a Vernier effect system. The two FPIs consist of two pairs of CTFBGs with a full width at half maximum (FWHM) of 66.5 nm staggered in parallel. The interferometric cavity lengths of the two FPIs were designed to be 2 mm and 1.98 mm as the reference arm and sensing arm of the sensor, respectively. The temperature sensitivity of this sensor was measured to be −1.084 nm/°C in a range of 40–90°C. This sensor is expected to play a crucial role in precision temperature measurement applications.