Spatial-frequency multiplexed fiber-optic Fizeau strain sensor system with optical amplification

A novel method for multiplexing fiber-optic Fizeau strain sensors with optical amplification is proposed and demonstrated. This method overcomes the two intrinsic disadvantages of fiber-optic Fabry-Perot (F-P) strain sensors, i.e. weak signal and difficult multiplexing. The amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) and optical amplification are used simultaneously to enhance the interferometric signal considerably. A Fizeau interferometer formed by two fiber ends with a quite different reflectivity is used to replace the F-P cavity in sensor head design. Such a Fizeau cavity can enlarge the cavity length by at least an order of magnitude and allows more than 10 sensors to be multiplexed simultaneously by using spatial-frequency multiplexing. The operating principle of the sensor system is discussed and an experiment is carried out to verify the concept of the method proposed. It is anticipated that such a sensor system could find important applications for health monitoring of large structures. (c) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.