Fiber-optic fluorescence sensor for highly sensitive and specific detection of chemical hazards
AssigneeSPI—Security Protection International/Securite Protection Internationale
InventorsYasser Chiniforooshan, Wojtek Bock
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Abstract
There is described a fiber-optic sensor for measuring a light signal from a fluorescible sample comprising heavy metal ions, for example. The fiber-optic sensor comprises an optical fiber having a side surface by which the light signal from the fluorescible sample is inputted. The optical fiber is corrugated to form at least two gratings on the side surface of the optical fiber. Each grating comprises periodically longitudinally spaced-apart valleys on the surface of the optical fiber, and is longitudinally spaced apart from any other grating of the at least two gratings.
Claims24
A fiber-optic sensor for measuring a light signal from a fluorescible sample, the fiber-optic sensor comprising:
- an optical fiber comprising a core having a portion which is un-cladded on a side of the optical fiber, the un-cladded portion of the core forming a surface by which the light signal from the fluorescible sample is inputted, the un-cladded portion of the core being corrugated on the surface to form at least two gratings on the side surface of the un-cladded portion of the core, each grating
- comprising periodically longitudinally spaced-apart valleys on the surface of the un-cladded portion of the core and
- being longitudinally spaced apart from any other grating of the at least two gratings.
A method of fabricating a fiber-optic sensor, the method comprising:
- un-cladding a segment of a core of an optical fiber to uncover a surface on a side of the core;
- providing an energetic beam;
- imprinting a plurality of gratings on the surface on the side of the core, comprising imprinting a plurality of valley on the surface of the core using the energetic beam;
- wherein between each imprinting of a valley, a relative displacement along a longitudinal axis of the optical fiber is performed between the optical fiber and the energetic beam, such that each valley is periodically longitudinally spaced-apart from any other valley belonging to a given grating;
- and
- wherein between each imprinting of a grating, a relative displacement along a longitudinal axis of the optical fiber is performed between the optical fiber and the energetic beam, such that each grating is longitudinally spaced-apart from any other grating.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.