An Optical Fiber Fabry-Perot Interferometric Sensor Based on Functionalized Diaphragm for Ultrasound Detection and Imaging

A miniature optical fiber ultrasonic sensor based on the Fabry-Perot interferometer (FPI) is proposed and experimentally demonstrated. The cavity of the interferometer is based on a section of hollow core fiber coated with a 353ND diaphragm. A well-define interference pattern is achieved, and the spectral sideband filter technique is used to interrogate the sensor. Because the thin reflective diaphragm is extremely sensitive to sound pressure, the signal-to-noise ratio of the sensor response reaches to 31.22 dB with the pulse ultrasonic excitation of 300 kHz. A clear interface information can be distinguished in physical model imaging, and the longitudinal spatial resolution is 5 mm. This proposed sensor has the advantages of being simple to fabricate, ultracompact in size, cost effective, corrosion resistance, and being highly stable.