Abstract

Interrogating a remote passive-sensor with high fidelity is one of the biggest challenges in the sensing domain. Recently, random fiber laser (RFL) combined with remote fiber sensors was proposed for optical fiber sensing with high signal-to-noise ratio over ultra-long-distance fiber link. However, only quasi-static sensing has been demonstrated. In this work, a novel dynamic sensing scheme based on backward-pumped random fiber laser is proposed, and its sensing bandwidth is both theoretically and experimentally studied. Particularly, a Raman-gain-modulated power-balance model reveals that the RFL intensity has instantaneous and linear response to remote feedback disturbances, laying the ground for ultra-high-bandwidth sensing; in a proof-of-concept experiment, RFL with 100 km fiber and a far-end fiber Bragg grating is used for dynamic strain sensing, and 65 kHz dynamic sensing is achieved, the sensing bandwidth of which is two orders higher than that determined by the lightwave round-trip time as in the pulse-probing cases. This work paves the way for ultra-high-bandwidth and ultra-long-distance interrogation for optical fiber sensors.

Impact of feedback bandwidth on Raman random fiber laser remote-sensing

Yifei Qi, Shengtao Lin, Jiaojiao Zhang, Pan Wang, and Zinan Wang
Opt. Express 30(12) 21268-21275 (2022)

Long-distance fiber-optic point-sensing systems based on random fiber lasers

Z. N. Wang, Y. J. Rao, H. Wu, P. Y. Li, Y. Jiang, X. H. Jia, and W. L. Zhang
Opt. Express 20(16) 17695-17700 (2012)

Long-distance random fiber laser point sensing system incorporating active fiber

Zinan Wang, Wei Sun, Han Wu, Xianyang Qian, Qiheng He, Zedong Wei, and Yunjiang Rao
Opt. Express 24(20) 22448-22453 (2016)

Ultra-long (290 km) remote interrogation sensor network based on a random distributed feedback fiber laser

V. DeMiguel-Soto, D. Leandro, and M. Lopez-Amo
Opt. Express 26(21) 27189-27200 (2018)

Random fiber laser based on a partial-reflection random fiber grating for high temperature sensing

Jiancheng Deng, D. V. Churkin, Zuowei Xu, and Xuewen Shu
Opt. Lett. 46(5) 957-960 (2021)