Non-destructive evaluation of fiber-reinforced composites with a fast 2D fiber-optic laser-ultrasound scanner

Abstract

Laser ultrasonic (LU) inspection represents an attractive, non-contact method to evaluate composite materials. Current non-contact systems, however, have relatively low sensitivity compared to contact piezoelectric detection. They are also difficult to adjust, very expensive, and strongly influenced by environmental noise. Here, we demonstrate that most of these drawbacks can be eliminated by combining a new generation of compact, inexpensive fiber lasers with new developments in fiber telecommunication optics and an optimally designed balanced probe scheme. In particular, a new type of a balanced fiber-optic Sagnac interferometer is presented as part of an all-optical LU pump-probe system for high speed non-destructive testing and evaluation (NDT&E) of aircraft composites. The performance of the LU system is demonstrated on a composite sample typically used in the aircraft industry. Wide-band ultrasound probe signals are generated directly at the sample surface with a pulsed diode-pumped laser delivering nanosecond laser pulses at a 1 kHz repetition rate with a pulse energy of 2 mJ. A balanced fiber-optic Sagnac interferometer is employed to detect pressure signals in a 1-10 MHz frequency range at the same point (an 8 μm focal spot) on the composite surface. A fast (up to 100 mm/s) 2D translation system is employed to move the sample during scanning and produce a complete B-scan consisting of one thousand A-scans in less than a second. The sensitivity of this system, in terms of the noise equivalent pressure, is found to be only 10 dB above the Nyquist thermal noise limit. To our knowledge, this is the best reported sensitivity for a non-contact ultrasonic detector of this dimension.