Abstract

We have developed a novel optical pressure transducer that utilizes diaphragm curvature rather than diaphragm displacement. As a result, this pressure sensor is insensitive to motion of the diaphragm due to vibration or thermal effects which adversely affect the performance of diaphragm displacement pressure sensors. Also, since the dependence of the output signal on source intensity is divided out, this optical sensing technique automatically compensates for variations in the source intensity. Furthermore, if the environment of the telemetry fibers is approximately homogeneous, much of the noise associated with fiber microbend losses will also be eliminated.

© 1983 Optical Society of America