Dynamic optical frequency domain reflectometry

Interval-locked dual-frequency φ-OFDR with an enhanced strain dynamic range and a long-term stability

We report on an interval-locked dual-frequency phase-sensitive optical frequency-domain reflectometry relying on a common-reference optical phase-locked loop. With a shared unbalanced interferometry, this design allows for synchronizing the frequency drift of two lasers, leading to a steadily stabilized dual frequency with an arbitrary interval. Equivalently to a longer synthetic wavelength, their phase difference is utilized to demodulate the ambient changes of interest with an enhanced dynamic range and long-term stability. With a stabilized interval of 1 THz, it allows for an enhancement in a strain measurement range of up to 193-fold in theory. Demonstration in terms of distributed strain sensing covering a distance of 500 m with a 10 cm spatial resolution has been verified, showing a significant extension in the achievable strain dynamic range with a preserved sensitivity over 1 h.

Quantitative quasi-distributed vibration sensing by φ-OFDR for multiple events over spatially consecutive sensing spatial resolutions

We report on a quantitative quasi-distributed vibration sensing (DVS) system enabled by phase-sensitive optical frequency domain reflectometry (φ-OFDR), which allows for multiple vibration events over consecutive spatial resolutions. To achieve effective crosstalk suppression and mitigation of the instability during the phase extraction, fiber with embedded ultra-weak grating arrays has been adopted as the sensing fiber. It exhibits a particularly customized low spatial duty cycle, that is, high ratio between the size of the gratings and their spacing and the spacing is additionally designed to match the integer multiple of the theoretical spatial resolution. In combination with a rectified frequency-modulated continuous-wave optical probe enabled by the optical phase-locked loop, it allows to achieve quantitative quasi-DVS for multiple events over consecutive sensing spatial resolution as high as ∼2.5 cm along the distance over ∼2200 m. The ability to simultaneously retrieve arbitrary multi-point vibration events over spatially consecutive sensing spatial resolutions with consistently linear response and sensitivity up to a few nano-strain level even at long distances has shown great potentials for the application of φ-OFDR from a practical point of view.

High-Sensitivity Fiber Fault Detection Method Using Feedback-Delay Signature of a Modulated Semiconductor Laser

We propose a high-sensitivity fiber fault detection method using the feedback-delay signature of a modulated semiconductor laser. The modulated laser is directed to a fiber fault and then receives the fault echo, which, in principle, forms an external cavity feedback laser. The fault location, i.e., the external cavity length, is measured by the feedback-delay signature appearing on the laser modulation response curve. The resonance effect between the modulation frequency and external cavity frequency significantly enhanced the laser sensitivity to feedback light and then led to highly sensitive fault detection. Numerical simulations based on laser rate equations predicted that −118.1 dB sensitivity to fault echo light can be obtained.

Distributed Acoustic Sensing Based on Coherent Microwave Photonics Interferometry

A microwave photonics method has been developed for measuring distributed acoustic signals. This method uses microwave-modulated low coherence light as a probe to interrogate distributed in-fiber interferometers, which are used to measure acoustic-induced strain. By sweeping the microwave frequency at a constant rate, the acoustic signals are encoded into the complex microwave spectrum. The microwave spectrum is transformed into the joint time-frequency domain and further processed to obtain the distributed acoustic signals. The method is first evaluated using an intrinsic Fabry Perot interferometer (IFPI). Acoustic signals of frequency up to 15.6 kHz were detected. The method was further demonstrated using an array of in-fiber weak reflectors and an external Michelson interferometer. Two piezoceramic cylinders (PCCs) driven at frequencies of 1700 Hz and 3430 Hz were used as acoustic sources. The experiment results show that the sensing system can locate multiple acoustic sources. The system resolves 20 nε when the spatial resolution is 5 cm. The recovered acoustic signals match the excitation signals in frequency, amplitude, and phase, indicating an excellent potential for distributed acoustic sensing (DAS).

Compact multifunction digital OFDR system without using an auxiliary interferometer

This paper describes an integrated, accurate, and inexpensive semiconductor laser -based optical frequency domain reflectometry (OFDR) system design. The system utilizes the fiber under test for both sensing and frequency sweep linearization functions, allowing the system to mitigate and compensate for phase errors without the need for an auxiliary interferometer, as is the case for traditional OFDR systems. Benefiting from the unique and embedded design, this system reaches the minimal OFDR system with only one optical interferometer and its corresponding optic-electric components without sacrificing accuracy. In addition, conventional design requires an external auxiliary interferometer, which may experience different noises from the main measuring interferometer, deteriorating the overall performance. Experimental results demonstrate the enhanced performance of the compact design as compared with the former methods, as well as the reduced complexity and improved cost-effectiveness.

Distributed Static and Dynamic Strain Measurements in Polymer Optical Fibers by Rayleigh Scattering

We demonstrate the use of a graded-index perfluorinated optical fiber (GI-POF) for distributed static and dynamic strain measurements based on Rayleigh scattering. The system is based on an amplitude-based phase-sensitive Optical Time-Domain Reflectometry (ϕ-OTDR) configuration, operated at the unconventional wavelength of 850 nm. Static strain measurements have been carried out at a spatial resolution of 4 m and for a strain up to 3.5% by exploiting the increase of the backscatter Rayleigh coefficient consequent to the application of a tensile strain, while vibration/acoustic measurements have been demonstrated for a sampling frequency up to 833 Hz by exploiting the vibration-induced changes in the backscatter Rayleigh intensity time-domain traces arising from coherent interference within the pulse. The reported tests demonstrate that polymer optical fibers can be used for cost-effective multiparameter sensing.

Doppler optical frequency domain reflectometry for remote fiber sensing

Coherent optical frequency domain reflectometry has been widely used to locate static reflectors with high spatial resolution. Here, we present a new type of Doppler optical frequency domain reflectometry that offers simultaneous measurement of the position and speed of moving objects. The system is exploited to track optically levitated "flying" particles inside a hollow-core photonic crystal fiber. As an example, we demonstrate distributed temperature sensing with sub-mm-scale spatial resolution and a standard deviation of ∼10°C up to 200°C.

Time-expanded phase-sensitive optical time-domain reflectometry

Phase-sensitive optical time-domain reflectometry (ΦOTDR) is a well-established technique that provides spatio-temporal measurements of an environmental variable in real time. This unique capability is being leveraged in an ever-increasing number of applications, from energy transportation or civil security to seismology. To date, a wide number of different approaches have been implemented, providing a plethora of options in terms of performance (resolution, acquisition bandwidth, sensitivity or range). However, to achieve high spatial resolutions, detection bandwidths in the GHz range are typically required, substantially increasing the system cost and complexity. Here, we present a novel ΦOTDR approach that allows a customized time expansion of the received optical traces. Hence, the presented technique reaches cm-scale spatial resolutions over 1 km while requiring a remarkably low detection bandwidth in the MHz regime. This approach relies on the use of dual-comb spectrometry to interrogate the fibre and sample the backscattered light. Random phase-spectral coding is applied to the employed combs to maximize the signal-to-noise ratio of the sensing scheme. A comparison of the proposed method with alternative approaches aimed at similar operation features is provided, along with a thorough analysis of the new trade-offs. Our results demonstrate a radically novel high-resolution ΦOTDR scheme, which could promote new applications in metrology, borehole monitoring or aerospace.

Recent Progress in Distributed Fiber Acoustic Sensing with Φ-OTDR

Distributed fiber acoustic sensing (DAS) technology can continuously spatially detect disturbances along the sensing fiber over long distance in real time. It has many unique advantages, including, large coverage, high time-and-space resolution, convenient implementation, strong environment adaptability, etc. Nowadays, DAS becomes a versatile technology in many fields, such as, intrusion detection, railway transportation, seismology, structure health monitoring, etc. In this paper, the sensing principle and some common performance indexes are introduced, and a brief overview of recent DAS researches in Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics (SIOM) is presented. Some representative research advances are explained, including, quantitative demodulation, interference fading suppression, frequency response boost, high spatial resolution, and distributed multi-dimension localization. The engineering applications of DAS, carried out by SIOM and other groups, are summarized and reviewed. Finally, possible future directions are discussed and concluded. It is believed that, DAS has great development potential and application prospect.

Long-range and wide-band vibration sensing by using phase-sensitive OFDR to interrogate a weak reflector array

In this paper, we propose and experimentally demonstrate a novel quasi-distributed fiber-optic vibration sensing system, which can achieve vibration measurement with a wide frequency response over a long distance. The system is based on phase-sensitive optical frequency domain reflectometry (ϕ-OFDR). The sensing part is a single-mode fiber (SMF) with auxiliary weak reflection points along it. By detecting the auxiliary weak reflection points, we can obtain the waveform of the vibration signal. In the experiments, single-point and multi-point vibrations with a wide-frequency response at 100 km are successfully measured, which validated the proposed system. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time to realize a wide-band vibration waveform measurement over such a long range by using reflectometry-based sensing system.

Sparse recovery methodologies for quasi-distributed dynamic strain sensing

Quasi-distributed measurement of strain and/or temperature is often implemented using arrays of weakly reflecting fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) whose reflection peaks are centered at the same nominal wavelength. The signals are obtained by measuring the phase difference between the reflections of consecutive FBGs. Typically, in such a system, the spatial resolution of the interrogator must be compatible with the spatial separation between consecutive FBGs. Insufficient resolution leads to an overlap of reflection peaks, a decrease in the differential-phase signal and poor sensitivity. In this paper, we study the use of two different sparsity based methodologies for improving the sensitivity of such quasi distributed acoustic sensing systems in the case where traditional signal processing approaches do not provide sufficient spatial resolution. These methods enable relaxing the requirements regarding the interrogator or, alternatively, reducing the needed separation between reflectors. Experimentally, these techniques were used to measure 1 kHz dynamic strain induced in a fiber segment between two discrete reflectors, located at the end of a 4 km long fiber. The separation between the reflectors was 18 m while the pulse (spatial) width was intentionally chosen bigger than that. It yielded approximately 5 dB increase in the measured signal compared to the traditional processing approach and an order of magnitude improvement in the sensitivity, ∼ 0.9 μ rad Hz .

Fiber-optic distributed seismic sensing data generator and its application for training classification nets

Distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) is a powerful tool thanks to its ease of use, high spatial and temporal resolution, and sensitivity. Growing demand for long-distance distributed seismic sensing (DSeiS) measurements, in conjunction with the development of efficient algorithms for data processing, has led to an increased interest in the technology from industry and academia. Machine-learning-based data processing, however, necessitates tedious in situ calibration experiments that require significant effort and resources. In this Letter, a geophysics-driven approach for generating synthetic DSeiS data is described, analyzed, and tested. The generated synthetic data are used to train DSeiS classification algorithms. The approach is validated by training an artificial neural-network-based classifier using synthetic data and testing its performance on experimental DSeiS records. Accuracy is greatly improved thanks to the incorporation of a geophysical model when generating training data.

Use of distributed acoustic sensing for Doppler tracking of moving sources

Distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) via fiber-optic reflectometry techniques is finding more and more applications in recent years. In many of these applications, the position of detected acoustic or seismic sources is defined with a single longitudinal coordinate which specifies the distance between the detection point in the fiber to the DAS interrogator. In this paper we describe a DAS system which is intended to operate in a fluid (air or water) and to detect and localize moving objects, with three spatial coordinates, using the acoustic waves they generate or reflect and their Doppler shifts. The new method uses optical frequency domain reflectometry (OFDR) and lumped Rayleigh reflectors (LRR's) to ensure sufficiently high sensitivity for operation in fluid media. The new method was used to track a narrowband (CW) signal source.

Nonlinear error correction for FMCW ladar by the amplitude modulation method

FMCW ladar is a kind of absolute distance measurement technology with high spatial resolution. However, the advantage of high spatial resolution is significantly covered up by the non-linearity of laser frequency sweep. One of the typical approaches for the nonlinearity is resample technology, which has residual phase error from the sample time delay mismatch between the clock signal and the measurement signal. We have proposed and demonstrated a novel amplitude modulation method for correcting the nonlinear error of FMCW technology. The optical structure of the method is comprised of two tandem fiber interferometers. The first interferometer is used to produce a carrier signal and the second one is used to load the range information on the amplitude of the carrier signal. In the end, the experimental result verifies that the nonlinear error can be suppressed effectively, the phase error from the mismatch has been eliminated observably, and the range resolution can be notably improved to 69μm; the stability is 2.9μm and the measurement precision is 4.3μm.

Distributed Optical Fiber Sensors Based on Optical Frequency Domain Reflectometry: A review

Distributed optical fiber sensors (DOFS) offer unprecedented features, the most unique one of which is the ability of monitoring variations of the physical and chemical parameters with spatial continuity along the fiber. Among all these distributed sensing techniques, optical frequency domain reflectometry (OFDR) has been given tremendous attention because of its high spatial resolution and large dynamic range. In addition, DOFS based on OFDR have been used to sense many parameters. In this review, we will survey the key technologies for improving sensing range, spatial resolution and sensing performance in DOFS based on OFDR. We also introduce the sensing mechanisms and the applications of DOFS based on OFDR including strain, stress, vibration, temperature, 3D shape, flow, refractive index, magnetic field, radiation, gas and so on.

High spatial resolution distributed fiber strain sensor based on phase-OFDR

A novel method to realize high spatial resolution distributed strain measurement is proposed based on phase demodulation scheme of optical frequency domain reflectometry (OFDR). Strain information can be demodulated directly by analyzing the phase change of Rayleigh backscattered light. Strain location can be obtained with high spatial resolution by cross-correlation method using a wide scanning range of tunable laser source. Based on the above scheme, breakpoint detection with 0.1 mm spatial resolution has been demonstrated, static and dynamic strain up to 100 Hz could be distributedly measured with 10 cm spatial resolution over 200 m sensing fiber, and the minimum measurable strain is about 1 με.

Sinusoidal frequency scan OFDR with fast processing algorithm for distributed acoustic sensing

Recently it was shown that sinusoidal frequency scan optical frequency domain reflectometry (SFS-OFDR) can achieve remarkable performance in applications of distributed acoustic sensing (DAS). The main advantage of SFS-OFDR is the simplicity with which highly accurate sinusoidal frequency scans can be generated (in comparison with linear frequency scans). One drawback of SFS-OFDR has been the computationally intensive algorithm it required for processing of the measured backscatter data. The complexity of this algorithm was O(N²) where N is the number of backscatter samples. In this work a fast processing algorithm for SFS-OFDR, with computational complexity O (N log N), is derived and its performance and limitations are studied in details. The new algorithm facilitated highly sensitive DAS operation over a sensing fiber of 64km, with 6.5m resolution and scan rate of 400Hz. The high sensitivity of the system was demonstrated in a field trial where it successfully detected human footsteps near the end of the fiber with excellent SNR.

Phase-based, high spatial resolution and distributed, static and dynamic strain sensing using Brillouin dynamic gratings in optical fibers

A novel technique combining Brillouin phase-shift measurements with Brillouin dynamic gratings (BDGs) reflectometry in polarization-maintaining fibers is presented here for the first time. While a direct measurement of the optical phase in standard BDG setups is impractical due to non-local phase contributions, their detrimental effect is reduced by ~4 orders of magnitude through the coherent addition of Stokes and anti-Stokes reflections from two counter-propagating BDGs in the fiber. The technique advantageously combines the high-spatial-resolution of BDGs reflectometry with the increased tolerance to optical power fluctuations of phasorial measurements, to enhance the performance of fiber-optic strain sensors. We demonstrate a distributed measurement (20cm spatial-resolution) of both static and dynamic (5kHz of vibrations at a sampling rate of 1MHz) strain fields acting on the fiber, in good agreement with theory and (for the static case) with the results of commercial reflectometers.

Millimeter-resolution long-range OFDR using ultra-linearly 100 GHz-swept optical source realized by injection-locking technique and cascaded FWM process

In this paper, we propose and demonstrate a millimeter-resolution long-range optical frequency domain reflectometry (OFDR) using an ultra-linearly 100-GHz swept optical source realized by injection-locking technique and cascaded four-wave-mixing (FWM) process. The ultra-linear sweep is realized using an external modulation method with a linearly swept radio frequency (RF) signal. The RF signal sweeps from 16 GHz to 19.3 GHz, and the slave laser is injection-locked to the 8th-order sideband of the master laser, achieving a frequency sweeping span of ~25 GHz. By using the injection-locked frequency-swept laser as the optical source of OFDR, we obtain a spatial resolution of 4.2 mm over 10-km measurement range. A polarization beat length of 10.5 cm is measured benefiting from the high spatial resolution. To improve the spatial resolution further, FWM process is used to broaden the frequency sweeping span. Frequency sweeping span of ~100 GHz is achieved with cascaded FWM. We demonstrate a 1.1-mm spatial resolution over 2-km measurement range with the proposed ultra-linearly swept optical source.

Signal conditioning for compensating nonlinearity and nonrepeatability of an optical frequency scanning laser implemented in a C-OFDR system

Reported systems using coherent optical frequency-domain reflectometry, C-OFDR, rely on the linearity of the scanning rate of the tunable laser and sometimes on its repeatability. In this work, we present the implementation of signal-conditioning algorithms for a fiber temperature sensor system based on coherent optical frequency-domain reflectometry. Postacquisition signal conditioning removes any nonlinearity and nonrepeatability effects and allows synchronization of the whole system. A low reflectivity, 0.1%, fiber Bragg grating, placed in a reference interferometer, is implemented for removing the nonrepeatability of the optical source. The spatial resolution achieved by the temperature fiber sensor is 0.36 mm, with repeatability of 0.032°C, while using telecommunication-grade components.

Distributed dynamic strain measurement using optical frequency-domain reflectometry

Distributed dynamic strain measurement based on optical frequency-domain reflectometry is proposed. The technique makes use of the wide scanning range of a tunable laser source in a short sweeping time, and subdivides the overall spectrum into narrower frequency windows. The advantage of subdividing the laser spectral range is to improve the measurement uncertainty induced by the laser wavelength difference between repeated scans. The noise-limited dynamic strain resolution is investigated experimentally, indicating that a minimum detectable strain is less than 200 nε for a spatial resolution of 20 cm. By measuring the subdivided spectral shifts in the time sequence along the sensing fiber, the dynamic strain can be properly quantified over a 30 m measurement range for a highest sampling rate of up to 50 Hz.

Distributed Fiber-Optic Sensors for Vibration Detection

Distributed fiber-optic vibration sensors receive extensive investigation and play a significant role in the sensor panorama. Optical parameters such as light intensity, phase, polarization state, or light frequency will change when external vibration is applied on the sensing fiber. In this paper, various technologies of distributed fiber-optic vibration sensing are reviewed, from interferometric sensing technology, such as Sagnac, Mach-Zehnder, and Michelson, to backscattering-based sensing technology, such as phase-sensitive optical time domain reflectometer, polarization-optical time domain reflectometer, optical frequency domain reflectometer, as well as some combinations of interferometric and backscattering-based techniques. Their operation principles are presented and recent research efforts are also included. Finally, the applications of distributed fiber-optic vibration sensors are summarized, which mainly include structural health monitoring and perimeter security, etc. Overall, distributed fiber-optic vibration sensors possess the advantages of large-scale monitoring, good concealment, excellent flexibility, and immunity to electromagnetic interference, and thus show considerable potential for a variety of practical applications.

Simplified optical correlation-domain reflectometry without reference path

We develop a simplified configuration for optical correlation-domain reflectometry (OCDR) without an explicit reference path. Instead, the Fresnel-reflected light generated at the distal open end of the sensing fiber is exploited as a reference light. After the fundamental demonstration, the optimal incident power is found to be approximately 8 dBm. We also show that the loss near the distal end should not be applied, unlike in the case of Brillouin-based OCDR.

High resolution DAS via sinusoidal frequency scan OFDR (SFS-OFDR)

There are many advantages to using direct frequency modulation for OFDR based DAS. However, achieving sufficiently linear scan via direct frequency modulation is challenging and poses limits on the scan parameters. A novel method for analyzing sinusoidal frequency modulated light is presented and demonstrated for both static and dynamic sensing. SFS-OFDR projects the measured signal onto appropriate sinusoidal phase terms to obtain spatial information. Thus, by using SFS-OFDR on sinusoidal modulated light it is possible to make use of the many advantages offered by direct frequency modulation without the limitations posed by the linearity requirement.

Distributed fiber-optic vibration sensing based on phase extraction from time-gated digital OFDR

A novel distributed fiber vibration sensing technique based on phase extraction from time-gated digital optical frequency domain reflectometry (TGD-OFDR) which can achieve quantitative vibration measurement with high spatial resolution and long measurement range is proposed. A 90 degree optical hybrid is used to extract phase information. By increasing frequency sweeping speed, the influence of environmental phase disturbance on TGD-OFDR is mitigated significantly, which makes phase extraction in our new scheme more reliable than that in conventional OFDR-based method, leading to the realization of long distance quantitative vibration measurement. By using the proposed technique, a distributed vibration sensor that has a measurement range of 40 km, a spatial resolution of 3.5 m, a measurable vibration frequency up to 600 Hz, and a minimal measurable vibration acceleration of 0.08g is demonstrated.

Phase-sensitive correlation optical time-domain reflectometer using quantum phase noise of laser light

We propose and experimentally demonstrate a simple approach to realize a phase-sensitive correlation optical time-domain reflectometer (OTDR) suitable for detection and localization of dynamic perturbations along a single-mode optical fiber. It is based on the quantum phase fluctuations of a coherent light emitted by a telecom DFB diode laser. Truly random probe signals are generated by an interferometer with the optical path difference exceeding the coherence length of the laser light. Speckle-like OTDR traces were obtained by calculating cross-correlation functions between the probe light and the light intensity signals returned back from the sensing fiber. Perturbations are detected and localized by monitoring time variations of correlation amplitude along the fiber length. Results of proof-of-concept experimental testing are presented using an array of ultra-low-reflectivity fiber Bragg gratings as weak reflectors.

Multiplexing of fiber-optic ultrasound sensors via swept frequency interferometry

The use of fiber-optic sensors for ultrasound (US) detection has many advantages over conventional piezoelectric detectors. However, the issue of multiplexing remains a major challenge. Here, a novel approach for multiplexing fiber-optic based US sensors using swept frequency interferometry is introduced. Light from a coherent swept source propagates in an all-fiber interferometric network made of a reference arm and a parallel connection of N sensing arms. Each sensing arm comprises a short polyimide coated sensing section (~4cm), which is exposed to the US excitation, preceded by a delay of different length. When the instantaneous frequency of the laser is linearly swept, the receiver output contains N harmonic beat components which correspond to the various optical paths. Exposing the sensing sections to US excitation introduces phase modulation of the harmonic components. The US-induced signals can be separated in the frequency domain and be extracted from their carriers by common demodulation techniques. The method was demonstrated by multiplexing 4 sensing fibers and detecting microsecond US pulses which were generated by a 2.25MHz ultrasound transducer. The pulses were successfully measured by all sensing fibers without noticeable cross-talk.

Optical frequency domain reflectometry at maximum update rate using I/Q detection

We introduce a new optical frequency domain reflectometry (OFDR) system and processing method that utilize negative beat frequencies for the first time. The new approach enables efficient use of the available system bandwidth and facilitates distributed sensing with the maximum allowable update rate for a given fiber length. This is achieved by using a coherent optical-communications-type receiver that detects both the in-phase (I) and quadrature (Q) components of the backscatter field. The I and Q components are digitally combined to produce a complex backscatter signal whose Fourier transform is not necessarily symmetric. Judicious processing of the complex backscatter signal maps the reflection profile of one half of the sensing fiber to positive beat-frequencies and the profile of the other half to negative beat-frequencies. The new approach was tested via comprehensive computer simulations and experiment.

Distributed acoustic and vibration sensing via optical fractional Fourier transform reflectometry

Distributed acoustic sensing has been traditionally implemented using optical reflectometry. Here we describe an alternative to the common interrogation approaches. According to the new method the frequency of the source is varied sinusoidally with time. For a sufficiently high scan frequency there is a position along the fiber,  z(0), for which the roundtrip time is half the scan period. Back-reflections from this point will generate a linear chirp at the receiver output. The Fractional Fourier Transform (FrFT) is used to analyze the receiver output and yields the reflection profile at z(0) and its vicinity. The method, which enables high spatial resolution at long distances with high scan rates, is demonstrated by detecting deliberate perturbations in the Rayleigh backscatter profile at the end of a 20km fiber with a scanning frequency of ~2.5kHz. The spatial resolution at this range and scan-rate is characterized by a measurement of the backscatter profile from a FBG's-array and is found to be ~2.8m.