High-resolution spectrally-resolved fiber optic sensor interrogation system based on a standard DWDM laser module.

This paper presents a spectrally-resolved integration system suitable for the reading of Bragg grating, all-fiber Fabry-Perot, and similar spectrally-resolved fiber-optic sensors. This system is based on a standard telecommunication dense wavelength division multiplexing transmission module that contains a distributed feedback laser diode and a wavelength locker. Besides the transmission module, only a few additional opto-electronic components were needed to build an experimental interrogation system that demonstrated over a 2 nm wide wavelength interrogation range, and a 1 pm wavelength resolution. When the system was combined with a typical Bragg grating sensor, a strain resolution of 1 με and temperature resolution of 0.1 °C were demonstrated experimentally. The proposed interrogation system relies entirely on Telecordia standard compliant photonic components and can thus be straightforwardly qualified for use within the range of demanding applications.