FIBEROPTIC FABRY-PEROT TEMPERATURE SENSOR USING A LOW-COHERENCE LIGHT-SOURCE

An interferometric fiber-optic sensor using a light emitting diode (LED) as the optical source is analyzed and demonstrated. The sensor arrangement employs two Fabry-Perot interferometers (FPI's) in series, one for sensing and one which serves as a reference. The optical output from the LED is spectrally modulated by reflection from the sensing FPI. Then, reflection or transmission by the reference FPI produces an interferometric beat response similar to that observed when a laser is used with the sensing interferometer alone. Best fringe visibility is obtained when the optical path lengths of the two interferometers are matched, and the fringes disappear when the path length difference becomes substantially greater than the coherence length of the LED. The predicted behavior is confirmed by experiments in which the temperature of the sensor FPI is changed while that of the reference is held constant.