Optical fiber refractometry based on multimode interference

This paper presents an overview of optical fiber sensors based on multimode interference with a focus on refractometric applications. A specific configuration is presented to measure the refractive index of the surrounding liquid based on the Fresnel reflection in the fiber tip, combined with a simple interrogation technique that uses two fiber Bragg gratings as discrete optical sources, with the measurand information encoded in the relative intensity variation of the reflected signals. A resolution of 1.75 x 10(-3) RIU is achieved. (C) 2011 Optical Society of America