Hands-On Course Schedule and Outline

Day One

Fiber optic sensors are comprised of light sources, modulators, light beam conditioning optics, optical fiber and detectors. These components will be reviewed and the interrelationship between their operation and characteristics and fiber sensor performance described.

Morning Lectures

  • Fundemental Components and Concepts
  • Intensity Based Fiber Optic Sensors
  • Spectral Reflection Based Fiber Optic Sensors

Afternoon Laboratories and Demonstrations

  • Handling and use of common fiber optic sensor components, hardware, and safety
  • Students will become familiar with the splicing, cleaving and assembly techniques associated with fiber optic sensors
  • Demonstration of high speed and long gage sensor systems
  • Students will build a liquid level fiber optic sensor

Day Two

Morning Lectures

  • The Mach-Zehnder and Michelson Interferometers
  • Multiplexing and Distributed Fiber Optic Sensors
  • The Sagnac Interferometer

Afternoon Laboratories and Demonstrations

Students will build a Sagnac interferometer to demonstrate the measurement of rotation and acoustic signals.  Fiber Bragg gratings as sensors, high-speed demodulation, and multi-axis grating systems are covered.  A voice-sensitive system will be demonstrated.

Day Three

One of the most exciting fields of fiber optic sensors is the area of fiber optic smart structures where hair thin optical fibers are placed in composite materials to measure such parameters as temperature, pressure and strain.  The application areas range from improving the manufacturing process to health and damage assessment systems.  This part of the course will provide an overview of fiber optic sensors that are appropriate for fiber optic smart structures and examples of how they are being applied.

Morning Lectures

  • Fiber Grating Sensors
  • Fiber Optic Smart Structures
  • Environmental Sensors

Afternoon Laboratories and Demonstrations

Demodulation techniques and data acquisition systems such as OSAs, wavemeters, and receivers will be reviewed. Recent applications and advancements will be demonstrated and discussed.  Students will be able to gain additional practice, look at individual applications, and have additional questions answered.