We demonstrate the measurement of and applications for reflected spectral signatures obtained from FBG sen- sors in dynamic environments. Three uses of the spectral distortion measurements for monitoring of airframe structures are presented: the measurement of the dynamic response of a laminated plate to an impact event; the measurement of damage induced spectral distortion in a thin plate during vibration loading; and the measurement of the change in dynamic response of an adhesively bonded joint with the progression of fatigue damage.
This paper presents an overview of non-intrusive electric field sensing. The non-intrusive nature is attained by creating a
sensor that is entirely dielectric, has a small cross-sectional area, and has the interrogation electronics a long distance
away from the system under test. One non-intrusive electric field sensing technology is the slab coupled optical fiber
sensor (SCOS). The SCOS consists of an electro-optic crystal attached to the surface of a D-shaped optical fiber. It is
entirely dielectric and has a cross-sectional area down to 0.3mm by 0.3mm. The SCOS device functions as an electric
field sensor through use of resonant mode coupling between the crystal waveguide and the core of a D-shaped optical
fiber. The resonant mode coupling of a SCOS device occurs at specific wavelengths whose spectral locations are
determined in part by the effective refractive index of the modes in the slab. An electric field changes the refractive
index of the slab causing a shift in the spectral position of the resonant modes. This paper describes an overview of the
SCOS technology including the theory, fabrication, and operation. The effect of crystal orientation and crystal type are
explained with respect to directional sensitivity and frequency response.
We demonstrate the measurement of and applications for full-spectral measurements collected from FBG sensors
in dynamic loading environments. The measurement of the dynamic response of a laminated plate to an impact
event highlights the information gained during the event as compared to after the event. The measurement
of damage induced spectral distortion in a thin plate during vibration loading demonstrates the capability of
separating spectral distortion due to multiple effects, including damage and vibration loading. Finally, the
measurement of the change in dynamic response of an adhesively bonded joint highlights the capability to
measure the progression of fatigue damage. Confirmation that the change in FBG response is due to fatigue
damage is performed through independent pulsed phase thermography imaging of the adhesively bonded joint.
Ion traps are widely used in the field of mass spectrometry. These devices use high electric fields to mass-selectively trap, eject, and count the particles of a material, producing a mass spectrum of the given material. Because of their usefulness, technology pushes for smaller, more portable ion traps for field use. Making internal ion trap field measurements not yet feasible because current electric field sensors are often too bulky or their metallic composition perturbs field measurements. Using slab coupled optical sensor (SCOS) technology, we are able to build sensors that are compatible with the spacing constraints of the ion trap. These sensors are created by attaching a nonlinear crystal slab waveguide to an optical fiber. When a laser propagates through the fiber, certain wavelengths of light couple out of the fiber via the crystal and create “resonances” in the output light spectrum. These resonances shift in proportion to a given applied electric field, and by measuring that shift, we can approximate the electric field. Developing a sensor that can effectively characterize the electric fields within an ion trap will greatly assist in ion trap design, fabrication, and troubleshooting techniques.
We present an optical fiber non-intrusive sensor for measuring high voltage transients. The sensor converts the unknown voltage to electric field, which is then measured using slab-coupled optical fiber sensor (SCOS). Since everything in the sensor except the electrodes is made of dielectric materials and due to the small field sensor size, the sensor is minimally perturbing to the measured voltage. We present the details of the sensor design, which eliminates arcing and minimizes local dielectric breakdown using Teflon blocks and insulation of the whole structure with transformer oil. The structure has a capacitance of less than 3pF and resistance greater than 10 GΩ. We show the measurement of 66.5 kV pulse with a 32.6μs time constant. The measurement matches the expected value of 67.8 kV with less than 2% error.
When fiber Bragg gratings (FBG) are tightly packed in a mesh and their peaks get close at a distance on the order of individual FBG spectrum widths, they start overlapping and there is a distance below which both peaks won’t be detectable anymore using standard peak detection method. Ability to determine locations of individual peaks even after they overlap allows more gratings in a mesh and an increase in shape sensing resolution. We use a linear interpolation method to estimate peak locations when peaks overlap and become undetectable with standard peak finding technique. We test this algorithm on experimentally obtained data and compare peak locations obtained by the algorithm to exact peak locations. We analyze the error to show that algorithm performs well when velocity of peaks stays uniform during peak crossing. However, the error rapidly increases if the velocity changes during crossing and the maximum error can occur in a situation when peaks change direction during peak crossing.
This paper presents improvements to slab-coupled optical fiber sensors (SCOS) for electric-field sensing. The improvements are based on changing the crystal cut and orientation of the slab waveguide in combination with altering the input light polarization. Traditional SCOS are fabricated using z-cut potassium titanyl phosphate crystals and are operated with TM polarized light. They have been shown to detect fields as low as 100 V/m. By using an x-cut crystal and TE polarized light, the sensitivity to electric fields is increased 8x due to, primarily, an increase in electric field penetration into the slab by exploiting a tangential boundary condition, and secondly, an increase to the effective electro-optic coefficient of the slab.
In this study we evaluate the measurements of a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensor embedded at the adhesive layer of a single composite lap joint subjected to harmonic excitation after fatigue loading. After a fully-reversed cyclic fatigue loading is applied to the composite lap joint, the full spectral response of the sensor is interrogated in reflection at 100 kHz during two states: with and without an added harmonic excitation. The dynamic response of the FBG sensor indicates strong nonlinearities as damage progresses. The short-time Fourier transform (STFT) is computed for the extracted peak wavelength information to reveal time-dependent frequencies and amplitudes of the dynamic FBG sensor response. Pulse-phase thermography indicates a progression in defect size at the adhesive layer that strongly suggests non-uniform loading of the FBG sensor.
We present a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) interrogation method using a micro-controller board and optical filter that
achieves high strain sensitivity and high dynamic range. This interrogation method allows high sensitivity detection of
ultrasonic waves superimposed on low-frequency (on the order of 100Hz) vibrations of arbitrary magnitude. One
possible application is in-situ structural health monitoring of windmill blades exposed to strong winds by using FBG sensors for detection of ultrasonic waves. Interrogator operation is based on the edge filtering method using a broadband source, fiber Fabry-Perot filter and a micro-controller board which acts as a control feedback loop that locks the filter wavelength to the mid-reflection point on the FBG spectrum. Wavelength locking method allows high sensitivity for edge filtering of high-frequency waves, while the feedback signal is the measurement of low-frequency vibration with high dynamic range. The concept of the interrogator operation and different implementations are described and discussed with experimental results.
This paper presents innovations that reduce the dimensions and interrogation complexity of a previously developed
multi-axis electric field sensor. These devices are based on slab coupled optical sensor (SCOS) technology. SCOS
are sensitive to electric fields that are parallel to the optic axis of the electro-optic slab. Electric fields are measured
in two axes by mounting SCOS devices, which have slabs with optic-axes perpendicular to the fiber (z-cut),
orthogonal to each other. In order to reduce dimensions of the sensor, the third-axis is measured by having a slab
with the optic-axis parallel to the fiber (x-cut). Since the resonant mode coupling of a SCOS device occurs at
specific wavelengths whose spectral locations are determined in part by the effective refractive index of the modes
in the slab, rotating a z-cut slab waveguide relative to the optical fiber will cause the spectral position of the
resonance modes to shift. This method allows the resonance modes to be tuned to specific wavelengths, enabling a
multi-axis SCOS to be interrogated with a single laser source.
We used high-speed full-spectrum interrogation of a Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG) sensor to measure dynamic strain in
different sensor packages in real-time. In this effort we performed solenoid impact tests on a variety of sensor mounting
structures made with FR4, steel, and carbon fiber composite materials. Full spectrum FBG interrogation at 40 kHz
repetition rate was the key that allowed us to measure and compare dynamic strain in the structures, with measurement
resolution on the sub-millisecond scale. With this interrogation method we were able to measure the full character of the
dynamic strain including the strain non-uniformity and distribution manifested in peak-splitting and spectrum
broadening. Results showed that the FR4 board with soft epoxy responded with a maximum dynamic strain on the order
of 3000 micro-strain. Adding hard materials such as steel and graphite fiber composite reduced the strain about 7 times.
However, the FR4 board mounted in a free-floating configuration using hard epoxy reduced the maximum strain to a
value below the noise threshold of the full spectrum interrogation configuration. Here we proposed using edge detection
method of FBG interrogation due to its increased strain sensitivity which enabled us to further analyze the critical results
obtained by full spectrum interrogation. We also proposed using edge detection to measure sensor strain in real time for
the purpose of filtering out the strain noise from useful signal. We will use the results and data obtained with both
methods to analyze and enhance the performance of our electric field sensors in environments of high static and dynamic
strain.
In this study we evaluate the measurements of a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensor subjected to a non-uniform static
strain state and simultaneously exposed to vibration loading. The full spectral response of the sensor is interrogated
in reflection at 100 kHz during two loading cases: with and without an added vibration load spectrum. The static
tensile loading is increased between each test, in order to increase the magnitude of the non-uniform strain field
applied to the FBG sensor. During steady-state vibration, the behavior of the spectral shape of the FBG reflection
varies depending on the extent of non-uniform strain. With high-speed full spectral interrogation, it is potentially
possible to separate this vibration-induced spectral change from spectral distortions due to non-uniform strain. Such
spectral distortion contains valuable information on the static damage state of the surrounding host material.
This paper presents a high repetition rate fiber Bragg grating (FBG) interrogation system that is able to capture the entire
reflection spectrum at a rate of up to 300 kHz. The system uses a high speed MEMS based tunable optical filter that is
driven with a sinusoidal voltage. The time varying FBG reflection spectrum in transmitted through the tunable filter.
The time varying signal is then mapped into time varying reflection spectra. This interrogation system is used during
two dynamic strain tests, in which the reflection spectra are measured at a repetition rate of 100 kHz. The first test is the
impact of a woven carbon composite and the second test is on an electromagnetic railgun.
Modern electronics are often shielded with metallic packaging to protect them from harmful electromagnetic
radiation. In order to determine the effectiveness of the electronic shielding, there is a need to perform non-intrusive
measurements of the electric field within the shielding. The requirement to be non-intrusive requires
the sensor to be all dielectric and the sensing area needs to be very small. The non-intrusive sensor is attained
by coupling a slab of non-linear optical material to the surface of a D shaped optical fiber and is called a slab
coupled optical fiber sensor (SCOS). The sensitivity of the SCOS is increased by using an organic electro-optic
(EO) polymer.
In this study we evaluate the measurements of a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensor subjected to a non-uniform static
strain state and simultaneously exposed to vibration loading. The full spectral response of the sensor is interrogated in
reflection at 100 kHz during two loading cases: with and without an added vibration load spectrum. The static tensile
loading is increased between each test, in order to increase the magnitude of the non-uniform strain field applied to the
FBG sensor. The spectral distortion due to non-uniform strain is observed to change once the sensor is exposed to a non-transient
150 Hz vibration spectrum. With high-speed full spectral interrogation, it is potentially possible to separate this
vibration-induced spectral change from spectral distortions due to non-uniform strain. Such spectral distortion contains
valuable information on the static damage state of the surrounding host material.
This paper presents a means for the high repetition rate interrogation of fiber Bragg gratings (FBG's). The new system
highlights a method that allows a tradeoff between the full spectrum capture rate and the wavelength range and/or the
spectral resolution of the technique. Rapid capture of the entire reflection spectrum at high interrogation rates shows
important features that are missed when using methods that merely track changes in the peak location of the spectrum.
The essential feature of the new system is that it incorporates a MEMs tunable filter driven by a variable frequency openloop
sinusoidal source. The paper demonstrates the new system on a laminated composite system under impact loading.
In this study we evaluate the measurements of fiber Bragg sensor spectra from a sensor embedded in a composite
laminate subjected to multiple low velocity impacts. The full-spectral response of the sensor is interrogated in reflection
at 100 kHz during the impact events. The measurement of the time dependent spectra features are compared with
previous results obtained at a 534 Hz interrogation rate. With the increased interrogation rate, we can observe a smooth
transition in the full-spectra response of the sensor between strikes and the presence of peak-splitting due to transverse
compression from the beginning of the laminate lifetime. Finally, at the 100 kHz acquisition rate, it is possible to
determine the maximum wavelength and accurately determine the duration of the impact event for all of the strikes.
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