In the present research, fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors were applied for the detection of transverse cracks, which cause strain distribution within the gage length, in carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) cross-ply laminates. An uncoated FBG sensor was embedded in 0 • ply on the border of 90 • ply in a CFRP cross-ply laminate. The reflection spectra from the FBG sensor were measured at various tensile stresses. As a result, the reflection spectrum became broad and had some peaks with an increase of the transverse crack density in the 90 • ply. After the crack density was saturated, the spectrum became narrow and had one large peak again. In order to confirm that the change in the spectrum was caused by transverse cracks, the spectra were calculated theoretically. The calculated result reproduced the change in the measured spectrum very well. These results show that the occurrence of transverse cracks can be detected from the change in the form of the reflection spectrum, and that the spectrum width at the half maximum is a good indicator for the quantitative evaluation of the transverse crack density in real time.
A high-sensitivity ultrasonic sensing system is proposed and demonstrated. In this system, a phase-shifted fiber Bragg grating (PS-FBG) is used as a sensor to achieve broadband and highly sensitive detection. The PS-FBG modulates the output of a tunable laser to detect the ultrasonic strain directly. Balanced photo-detector (BPD) is used for eliminating the DC component and further amplifying the AC component in the detected signal. Another major function of the BPD is to reject laser intensity noise. As a result, the minimum detectable strain is limited by the BPD's noise and laser frequency noise. The sensitivity of the system is 9 nε/Hz(1/2). Because of its high sensitivity, this system has the potential to be used in acousto-ultrasonic testing without amplifying the input signal and in practical acoustic emission detection.
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