Temperature-insensitive vector curvature sensor based on four-core fiber offset structure

Abstract

Vector curvature measurement is very important in industrial fields with the unavoidable problem of temperature crosstalk. To improve the detection performance, a novel temperature-insensitive vector bending sensor have been proposed in the paper. The sensor is fabricated by core-offset splicing a segment of four-core fiber (FCF) between two single-mode fibers (SMFs). The Mach-Zehnder interference and the recognition ability of bending directions are enhanced by the core-offset structure. The experimental results demonstrate the curvature sensitivities of our sensor reach 38.16 nm/m−1, 37.46 nm/m−1, 4.99 nm/m−1 and −7.12 nm/m−1 in different bending directions within the range of 0.346–0.49 m−1. The average temperature sensitivity is only −6.67 pm/℃ in the range of 30–90 °C. The all-fiber, low cost, high sensitivity, and excellent vectoriality make our sensor more potential in harsh, complex industrial environment.