Reflective fiber-optic refractometer based on a thin-core fiber tailored Bragg grating reflection

A novel reflective refractometer based on a thin-core fiber (TCF) sandwiched between a leading single-mode fiber (SMF) and a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) imprinted SMF stub was demonstrated. The reflection from the fiber stub occurs in two well-defined wavelength bands, corresponding to the Bragg core mode and cladding modes. The TCF section functions as a tailorable bridge between the FBG core mode reflection and the surrounding refractive index (SRI). Linear response with enhanced sensitivity of 133.26 dB/refractive index unit for temperature-immune SRI measurement within the biologically desirable sensing range of 1.33-1.41 has been achieved via cost-effective power detection.