Abstract

Stimulated Brillouin scattering (SBS) is a non-linear process that occurs in optical fibres at much lower pump power than most other non-linear effects. The pump wave is scattered into a backward-propagating Stokes wave that experiences a frequency shift lying in the 12-13 GHz range at 1300 nm. This shift is proportional to the acoustic velocity within the fibre, making SBS an efficient tool for sensing applications, e.g. for monitoring strains in installed fibres [1].

© 1993 Optical Society of America