Polymer photonic crystal fibre for sensor applications

Abstract

Polymer photonic crystal fibres combine two relatively recent developments in fibre technology. On the one hand, polymer optical fibre has very different physical and chemical properties to silica. In particular, polymer fibre has a much smaller Young's modulus than silica, can survive higher strains, is amenable to organic chemical processing and, depending on the constituent polymer, may absorb water. All of these features can be utilised to extend the range of applications of optical fibre sensors. On the other hand, the photonic crystal -or microstructured -geometry also offers advantages: flexibility in the fibre design including control of the dispersion properties of core and cladding modes, the possibility of introducing minute quantities of analyte directly into the electric field of the guided light and enhanced pressure sensitivity. When brought together these two technologies provide interesting possibilities for fibre sensors, particularly when combined with fibre Bragg or long period gratings. This paper discusses the features of polymer photonic crystal fibre relevant to sensing and provides examples of the applications demonstrated to date.

An Ultrashort Wavelength Multi/Demultiplexer via Rectangular Liquid-Infiltrated Dual-Core Polymer Optical Fiber

“…Polymer optical fibers (POFs) have a well-established use as a low-cost alternative to silica fiber in short-range communications systems, for example, digital home appliance interfaces, home and car network, and traffic control application, where the attenuation of polymers is very low [54,55]. The cost advantage mainly comes from the ease of installation of the POF fiber, which is simple to cleave and connect and is highly flexible, even with the standard 1mm diameter [56]. A variety of polymers can be used as POFs, such as polymethyl-methacrylate (PMMA), polyethylene, cyclic-olefin copolymer (COC), cyclo-olefin polymer (COP), and Teflon [57,58].…”

A Self-Referenced Optical Intensity Sensor Network Using POFBGs for Biomedical Applications

“…On the other hand, although polymer optical fibers (POFs) are seen as a lower cost alternative solution to silica-based short-distance optical links, they are also very attractive for exploitation in in-vivo sensing applications because they are inherently more biocompatible compared to their silica counterparts [ 10 ]. Moreover, the use of silica fiber is sometimes inappropriate due to the risks from breakages.…”

Photonic crystal fiber Bragg grating based sensors: opportunities for applications in healthcare

“…First, the use of photonic crystal fibers which allow for unprecedented design flexibility of waveguide and sensing features 3,4 . Second, the use of polymer optical fibers which can withstand much larger mechanical deformations before breaking than their silica counterparts and which are inherently more bio-compatible 5,6 . Third, the embedding of OFS in flexible and stretchable polymer materials that provides solutions for wearable biomedical sensor devices [7][8][9] .…”