Fabrication of a Hydrogen Sensing Optical Fiber Using Atomic Layer Deposition

Abstract

We fabricated a Pd-coated optical fiber for hydrogen sensing using atomic layer deposition (ALD) for the first time. Pd atoms can be bonded to the silica cladding of an optical fiber much more strongly using ALD than those achieved using an electroplating method or magnetron sputtering deposition. The sensing fiber fabrication process and the experiments to detect hydrogen are reported in detail. ALD is shown to produce high-quality hydrogen sensing fibers.