Fiber Bragg Grating Sensor Array System Based on Digital Phase Generated Carrier Demodulation and Reference Compensation Method

A novel fiber Bragg grating （FBG） sensor array system based on digital phase generated carrier （PGC） demodulation and reference compensation method is proposed and set up. Experimental results confirm that the digital PGC demodulation can be used for wavelength-division-multiplexed FBG sensor array and the reference compensation method can reduce the environmental interference by approximately 40 dB in the frequency range from 20 Hz to 2 kHz. The minimum detectable wavelength-shift of the sensor system is 1 × 10^-3 pm/Hz^1/2.

Implementation of Phase Generated Carrier Technique for FBG Laser Sensor Multiplexed System Based on Compact RIO

This paper presents the fundamental technique of phase generated carrier （PGC） and its realization on compact reconfigurable input and output （RIO） which adopts real-time and field programmable grate array （FPGA） techniques. Improvement of the PGC technique is also introduced by using peak-to-peak value detection method to reduce the influence of variation of the light intensity. A four-element fibre Bragg gratings （FBG） laser sensor system is conducted in the experiment and the demodulated results demonstrate correlation coefficient as high as 0.995 with the reference signal and the dynamic range to be 120dB@63Hz.

External Optical Feedback Induced Noise in DFB Fiber Laser Sensor System

External optical feedback effects due to reflection, Rayleigh backscattering and coherent Rayleigh backseattering in fiber distributed feedback （DFB） fiber laser sensor system have been investigated. If the feedback intensity exceeds critical amount, excess noise would be induced in the demodulator. The maximum tolerable intensity back-reflection coefficient Rc and backscattering coefficient Sc into a fiber DFB laser with lead fiber length from I m to 37.5 km before the onset of instabilities are shown. Rc is found to decrease with increasing lead fiber length while Sc was relatively invariable with varying fiber length. The coherent Rayleigh backscattering （CRBS） would induce neglectable noise with a lead fiber exceeding 13.5 kin. To eliminate these noises, one or two isolators should be incorporated in the system.

Range-Gated Laser Stroboscopic Imaging for Night Remote Surveillance

For night remote surveillance, we present a method, the range-gated laser stroboscopic imaging（RGLSI）, which uses a new kind of time delay integration mode to integrate target signals so that night remote surveillance can be realized by a low-energy illuminated laser. The time delay integration in this method has no influence on the video frame rate. Compared with the traditional range-gated laser imaging, RGLSI can reduce scintillation and target speckle effects and significantly improve the image signal-to-noise ratio analyzed. Even under low light level and low visibility conditions, the RGLSI system can effectively work. In a preliminary experiment, we have detected and recognized a railway bridge one kilometer away under a visibility of six kilometers, when the effective illuminated energy is 29.5μl.

Temporal Parameter Optimization in Four-Dimensional Flash Trajectory Imaging

In four-dimensional flash trajectory imaging,temporal parameters include time delay,laser pulse width,gate time,pulse pair repetition frequency and the frame rate of CCD,which directly impact on the acquisition of target trajectories over time.We propose a method of optimizing the temporal parameters of flash trajectory imaging.All the temporal parameters can be estimated by the spatial parameters of the volumes of interest,target scale and velocity,and target sample number.The formulae for optimizing temporal parameters are derived,and the method is demonstrated in an experiment with a ball oscillating as a pendulum.

Fiber Laser Sensing System and Its Applications

An overview of fiber laser sensing is presented.The design and the characteristics of distributed feedback(DFB)fiber lasers for high performance sensing applications are described.Demodulation techniques based on unbalanced fiber interferometer are discussed,especially for the noise level,the dynamic range,and the crosstalk in dense-wavelength-division multiplexing.Finally,the fiber laser sensing system configurations and field demonstrations for different applications are illustrated.

Impact of multipath effects on theoretical accuracy of TOA-based indoor VLC positioning system

This paper discusses the time-of-arrival(TOA) based indoor visible light communication(VLC) positioning system in a non-line-of-sight environment. The propagation delay is assumed to be gamma distributed. The generalized Cramer–Rao lower bound for multipath propagation is derived as the theoretical accuracy limitation. The performance of the positioning system is affected by the shape parameter and the scale parameter of gamma distribution.The influences on positioning accuracy of multipath effects are analyzed through discussing the physical meaning of the gamma distribution parameters. It is concluded that the lower bound of positioning accuracy is attained when variance of the non-line-of-sight propagation-induced path lengths is zero. The simulation result provesthat the theoretical positioning accuracy is in the order of centimeters with the given scenario.

Internet of Things to network smart devices for ecosystem monitoring

Smart, real-time, low-cost, and distributed ecosystem monitoring is essential for understanding and managing rapidly changing ecosystems. However, new techniques in the big data era have rarely been introduced into operational ecosystem monitoring, particularly for fragile ecosystems in remote areas.We introduce the Internet of Things(IoT) techniques to establish a prototype ecosystem monitoring system by developing innovative smart devices and using IoT technologies for ecosystem monitoring in isolated environments. The developed smart devices include four categories: large-scale and nonintrusive instruments to measure evapotranspiration and soil moisture, in situ observing systems for CO2 and d13 C associated with soil respiration, portable and distributed devices for monitoring vegetation variables, and Bi-CMOS cameras and pressure trigger sensors for terrestrial vertebrate monitoring. These new devices outperform conventional devices and are connected to each other via wireless communication networks. The breakthroughs in the ecosystem monitoring IoT include new data loggers and longdistance wireless sensor network technology that supports the rapid transmission of data from devices to wireless networks. The applicability of this ecosystem monitoring IoT is verified in three fragile ecosystems, including a karst rocky desertification area, the National Park for Amur Tigers, and the oasis-desert ecotone in China. By integrating these devices and technologies with an ecosystem monitoring information system, a seamless data acquisition, transmission, processing, and application IoT is created. The establishment of this ecosystem monitoring IoT will serve as a new paradigm for ecosystem monitoring and therefore provide a platform for ecosystem management and decision making in the era of big data.

A new synchronization control circuit based on FPGA for the laser range-gated imaging system

Synchronization control is a kernel technique of the laser range-gated(LRG) imaging system which controls the synchronization of the pulsed laser and the ICCD camera directly.It can achieve range gating effectively and improve the resolution of image precisely.Conventional control circuits which are composed of discrete components have a poor performance of anti-interference,and the transmitting signal has a bad delay which affects the conventional circuit's precision and stabilization seriously.To solve these problems,a range-gated synchronization control circuit is designed.This circuit,which takes the advantages of FPGA's high compact and flexibility,uses the phase-locking-loop(PLL) to multiply the global clock frequency.This design improves the precision and stabilization greatly,makes the precision up to a nanosecond level and provides a real-time selection of the values of pulse width and delays.Experiments results indicate that this circuit has a high precise and stable range-gated pulse.

Fiber Optic 3-Component Seismometer

An all-metal 3-component optical fiber seismometer was proposed and experimentally demonstrated. The theoretical analysis was given based on the electro-mechanical theory. Calibration results showed that the axis sensitivity was about 41 dB （re： 0dB=1rad/g） with a fluctuation ＋2dB in the frequency bandwidth of 5 Hz - 400 Hz. A transverse sensitivity of about -40 dB was achieved. The fluctuation of the acceleration sensitivity for the three accelerometers in the seismometer was within ±2.5 dB. The minimum phase demodulation detection accuracy of the phase-generated cartier （PGC） was 10-Srad/√Hz, and the minimum detectable acceleration was calculated to be 90 ng/√Hz.

Fiber Bragg grating hydrophone with high sensitivity

A fiber Bragg grating （FBG） hydrophone with high sensitivity was demonstrated. This hydrophone used a rubber diaphragm and a copper hard core as the sensing element. To compensate the hydrostatic pressure, a capillary tube was fixed at the end of the hydrophone. Theoretical analysis of the acoustic pressure sensitivity was given in this letter. Experiments were carried out to test the frequency response of the hydrophone. The result shows that when the Young＇s modulus of the diaphragm is higher, a flatter frequency response will be obtained.

Enhancement of rapid lifetime determination for time-resolved fluorescence imaging in forensic examination

An enhancement method of rapid lifetime determination is proposed for time-resolved fluorescence imaging to discriminate substances with approximate fluorescence lifetime in forensic examination. In the method, an image-exclusive-OR treatment with filter threshold adaptively chosen is presented to extract the region of interest from dual-gated fluorescence intensity images, and then the fluorescence lifetime image is reconstructed based on the rapid lifetime determination algorithm. Furthermore, a maximum and minimum threshold filtering is developed to automatically realize visualization enhancement of the lifetime image. In proof experiments, compared with traditional fluorescence intensity imaging and rapid lifetime determination method, the proposed method automatically distinguishes altered and obliterated documents written by two brands of highlighters with the same color and close fluorescence lifetime.

Random Bragg-grating-based wavelength-tunable random fiber laser with a full-open cavity

A full-open-cavity wavelength-tunable random fiber laser(WT-RFL) with compact structure and hundreds of picometers tuning range is proposed and demonstrated. A π fiber Bragg grating(FBG) is used in the WT-RFL as a filter to select lasing wavelengths. The two random Bragg grating arrays(RBGAs) and a section of high gain erbium-doped fiber result in a low lasing threshold and high stability. A numerical model to analyze the tunable characteristics is developed. The results show that the laser threshold is 22 m W, and the maximum peak-power fluctuation is 0.55 d B. To the best of our knowledge, it is the first time that a compact and full-open-cavity WT-RFL with two RBGAs and a π-FBG is proposed.

Design of low frequency fiber optic Fabry–Perot seismometer based on transfer function analysis

We develop a low frequency fiber Fabry–Perot(F-P)seismometer based on transfer function analysis.The seismometer structure and demodulation system accuracy are limitations of low frequency seismic monitoring.The transfer function of the F-P seismometer is analyzed,and the mass displacement spectrum(MDS)is introduced.MDS provides guidance for mechanical structure design and optical interferometer analysis to achieve low noise.The F-P seismometer prototype is built.The experiment shows that the prototype has an average noise of 6.74 ng=p Hz below 50 Hz,and its noise is less than that of the global new high noise model within 0.16–50 Hz,whose potential is considerable.

Robust 3-component optical fiber accelerometer for seismic monitoring

A robust cantilever-based push-pull 3-component （3-C） optical fiber accelerometer is proposed and experi- mentally demonstrated. Sensitivity and resonance frequency can be enhanced simultaneously by increasing the number of turns of an optical fiber without increasing the accelerometer size at the mass of a certain value. The calibration results show that axis sensitivity is 45 dB （re： 0 dB - 1 rad/g）, with a fluctuation less than 0.9 dB in a frequency bandwidth of 10-450 Hz. The cross sensitivity is approximately 15 dB, with a fluctuation less than 1.2 dB in a frequency bandwidth of 10-450 Hz. The erosstalk reaches up to 30 dB. Fluctuation of the responses of the acceleration sensitivity of different components is less than 0.7 dB over a frequency bandwidth of 10 450 Hz, which proves the good consistency of the 3-C optical fiber aeeelerometer. By usingan all-metal structure is expected to improve the reliability of the designed aceelerometer for long-term use in harsh environments. These desirable features show that the proposed 3-C optical fiber accelerometer is satisfactory for seismic wave monitoringin oil and gas exploration.

Numerical analysis for four-wave mixing based wavelength conversion of differential phase-shift keying signals

We numerically investigate the main constrains for high efficiency wavelength conversion of differential phase-shift keying （DPSK） signals based on four-wave mixing （FWM） in highly nonlinear fiber （HNLF）. Using multi-tone pump phase modulation techniques, high efficiency wavelength conversion of DPSK signals is achieved with the stimulated BriIlouin scattering （SBS） effects effectively suppressed. Our analysis shows that there is a compromise between conversion efficiency and converted idler degradation. By optimizing the pump phase modulation configuration, the converted DPSK idler＇s degradation can be dramatically decreased through balancing SBS suppression and pump phase modulation degradation. Our simulation results also show that these multi-tone pump phase modulation techniques are more appropriate for the future high bit rate systems.

Dispersion characteristics of nanometer-scaled silicon rib waveguides

We investigate the dispersion properties of nanometer-scaled silicon waveguides with channel and rib cross section around the optical fiber communication wavelength and systematically study their relationship with the key structural parameters of the waveguide.The simulation results show that the introduction of an extra degree of freedom in the rib depth enables the rib waveguide more flexible in engineering the group velocity dispersion（GVD） compared with the channel waveguide.Besides,we get the structural parameters of the waveguides that can realize zero-GVD at 1550 nm.

Recent progress in optoelectronic applications of hybrid 2D/3D silicon-based heterostructures

Silicon-based semiconductor technology has made great breakthroughs in the past few decades,but it is reaching the physical limits of Moore’s law.In recent years,the presence of two-dimensional(2 D)materials was regarded as an opportunity to break the limitation of traditional siliconbased optoelectronic devices owing to their special structure and superior properties.In consideration of the widely studied hybrid integration of 2 D material detectors and 3 D siliconbased systems,in this paper,the basic properties of several 2 D materials used in photodetectors are summarized.Subsequently,the progress in silicon photonic integrated photodetectors based on 2 D materials is reviewed,followed by the summarization of the device structure and main performances.Then,the combination of some other traditional and2 D devices is discussed as a supplement.Finally,the prospective development of the hybrid 2 D/3 D silicon-based heterostructures is expected.

Impact of echo broadening effect on active range-gated imaging

Analytical formulas and experimental proof of the echo broadening effect in active range-gated imaging, including atmospheric interference, currently exist. We investigate the impact of this effect on target detection. Our research demonstrates that the echo broadening effect affects the energy profile of the depth of view and collects only part of the signals of targets in head and tail zones. Under bad weather conditions, the effect weakens the signal-to-noise ratio （SNR） of images, especially in cases with large laser pulse width. Fortunately, by modifying the laser pulse width, the effect can be controlled. These results are valuable to the applications of active range-gated imaging.

Depth map resolution improvement for 3D range-intensity correlation laser imaging

This Letter proposes a high bit-depth coding method to improve depth map resolution and render it suitable to human-eye observation in 3D range-intensity correlation laser imaging. In this method, a high bit-depth CCD camera with a nanosecond-sealed gated intensifier is used as an image sensor; subsequently two high bit-depth gate images with specific range-intensity profiles are obtained to establish the gray depth map and finally the gray depth map is encoded by an equidensity pseudocolor. With this method, a color depth map is generated with higher range resolution. In our experimental work, the range resolution of the depth map is improved by a factor of 1.67.