Abstract
It is confirmed, by considering a wide range of laminated composites containing a variety of fibres and matrices, that negative thermal expansion coefficients may be obtained. These are usually accompanied by a correspondingly large value of the in-plane axial Poisson’s ratio (PR). By making use of this large PR extremely negative values of expansivity may be obtained – much further negative than for any monolithic materials. The use of laminated composites also overcomes some of the previously reported limitations of a device to control thermal expansion when made with monolithic materials. The use of the device, as a platform to control the expansivity of an optical fibre containing a Bragg grating, is discussed in detail and it is shown that the required negative expansivity of −10 −5 K −1 may easily be obtained with a number of composite systems.
Published Version
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