A Method to Eliminate the Influence of Frequency-Modulating-Induced Auxiliary Amplitude Modulation on the Calibration of 3 × 3 Coupler Asymmetric Parameters

Abstract

The 3 × 3 demodulation algorithm has been widely used in retrieving the phase information in the optical fiber sensing system, while the asymmetry of the 3 × 3 coupler can introduce some distortions. In this situation, the parameters of the 3 × 3 coupler can be calibrated by the ellipse fitting method to remove the distortions. Conducting a frequency modulation on the laser, together with an unbalanced Michelson interferometer, makes the ellipse fitting method implemented, which is more appropriate for all-optical sensing. Unexpectedly, the auxiliary amplitude modulation of the laser induced by the frequency modulation is inevitable, leading to the deterioration of the calibration. In this paper, the influence of the auxiliary amplitude modulation on the calibration of the asymmetric parameters is analyzed theoretically and verified experimentally, on the basis of which a convenient but highly efficient method for acquiring the output of the laser and removing related items from the interferometric signals is put forward. The feasibility and robustness of the proposed solution is tested experimentally, and the results show that the mean square errors of the fittings and the variation coefficients of the calibrated parameter sequences are at the scale of 10−5 and 10−4, respectively, indicating that the method performs very well.

Large-Dynamic-Range and High-Stability Phase Demodulation Technology for Fiber-Optic Michelson Interferometric Sensors

“…Fiber-optic Michelson interferometric sensors have been widely researched for monitoring vibration, soundwave, acceleration, liquid refractive index, magnetic field, flow velocity and strain because of their advantages such as high sensitivity, light weight, electromagnetic immunity and capability of multiplexing [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 ]. Several demodulation technologies have been put forward to interrogate the phase signal of fiber-optic Michelson interferometric sensors, including phase generate carrier (PGC) demodulation [ 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 ], 3 × 3 coupler demodulation [ 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 ] and spectrum demodulation [ 19 , 20 ].…”

“…Traditional 3 × 3 coupler demodulation becomes invalid when those two characteristics are no longer perfect. Zhang et al [ 16 ] calibrated parameters of the 3 × 3 coupler by the ellipse fitting method, which conducts a frequency modulation on the laser and leads to auxiliary amplitude modulation (AAM). An extra photodetector was used to detect the output of the light source to remove AAM in real time.…”