Automated fabrication of U-shaped silica optical fibers with high reproducibility and sensitivity

IF 4.9 3区工程技术 Q2 ENGINEERING, ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONIC

Sensors and Actuators A-physical Pub Date : 2025-09-19 DOI:10.1016/j.sna.2025.117077

Kiyoshi Hirakawa , Minoru Okamoto , Akihito Kurosawa , Keita Mitsune , Yusaku Yanagibashi , Hirofumi Okuda , Seung-Woo Lee

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Abstract

An automated bending process was developed for preparing U-shaped optical fibers to minimize variability and enhance the refractive index (RI) response for sensing applications. A silica optical fiber with a core diameter of 600 µm and target bending radius of 1.25 mm was formed into a U-shape by three consecutive bending processes to enhance its stability. A jeweler’s flame burner was employed for localized heating using air instead of oxygen as the oxidizing gas to avoid an excessive temperature rise. The movement of the flame was precisely controlled by a compact linear actuator with a pulse input for micrometer-level adjustments. A CO₂ laser was used to create a smooth end face for the optical fiber and result in a polished finish. Compared with manually fabricated U-shaped probes, the automated process combined with CO₂ laser cutting reduced the coefficient of variation (CV) of optical power from 11.1 % to 3.23 %, representing a 3.4-fold improvement in reproducibility. The RI response at a wavelength of 660 nm was measured to be 115.8 dB per refractive index unit (RIU) within a broad RI range of 1.330–1.430.

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具有高再现性和灵敏度的u型二氧化硅光纤的自动制备

开发了一种用于制备u型光纤的自动弯曲工艺，以最大限度地减少变异性并提高折射率（RI）响应，用于传感应用。芯径为600 µm，目标弯曲半径为1.25 mm的二氧化硅光纤，通过三次连续弯曲形成u型光纤以增强其稳定性。使用珠宝商的火焰燃烧器进行局部加热，使用空气代替氧气作为氧化气体，以避免温度过高升高。火焰的运动由一个紧凑的线性致动器精确控制，该致动器具有用于微米级调整的脉冲输入。CO2激光器用于为光纤创建光滑的端面，并产生抛光效果。与手工制作的u形探头相比，结合CO₂激光切割的自动化工艺将光功率的变异系数（CV）从11.1 %降低到3.23 %，再现性提高了3.4倍。在1.330-1.430的宽折射率范围内，在660 nm波长处的RI响应为115.8 dB / RIU。

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来源期刊

Sensors and Actuators A-physical 工程技术-工程：电子与电气

CiteScore

8.10

自引率

6.50%

发文量

630

审稿时长

49 days

期刊介绍： Sensors and Actuators A: Physical brings together multidisciplinary interests in one journal entirely devoted to disseminating information on all aspects of research and development of solid-state devices for transducing physical signals. Sensors and Actuators A: Physical regularly publishes original papers, letters to the Editors and from time to time invited review articles within the following device areas: • Fundamentals and Physics, such as: classification of effects, physical effects, measurement theory, modelling of sensors, measurement standards, measurement errors, units and constants, time and frequency measurement. Modeling papers should bring new modeling techniques to the field and be supported by experimental results. • Materials and their Processing, such as: piezoelectric materials, polymers, metal oxides, III-V and II-VI semiconductors, thick and thin films, optical glass fibres, amorphous, polycrystalline and monocrystalline silicon. • Optoelectronic sensors, such as: photovoltaic diodes, photoconductors, photodiodes, phototransistors, positron-sensitive photodetectors, optoisolators, photodiode arrays, charge-coupled devices, light-emitting diodes, injection lasers and liquid-crystal displays. • Mechanical sensors, such as: metallic, thin-film and semiconductor strain gauges, diffused silicon pressure sensors, silicon accelerometers, solid-state displacement transducers, piezo junction devices, piezoelectric field-effect transducers (PiFETs), tunnel-diode strain sensors, surface acoustic wave devices, silicon micromechanical switches, solid-state flow meters and electronic flow controllers. Etc...