Realization of an embedded fiber Bragg grating-based pressure sensor in fiber-reinforced composites: Embedding techniques and performance characteristics

The paper describes the design features and characteristics of an embedded fiber Bragg grating (FBG) pressure sensor that has been developed to measure forces applied in the direction perpendicular to the fiber axis. This FBG-based pressure sensor provides an absolute measurement in terms of wavelength shift, which avoids problems of signal-intensity fluctuation often encountered by conventional intensity-modulated or phase-modulated pressure sensors. The initial outcome of our study indicates that direct sensing using bare-FBG is infeasible for real applications due to its non-linearity and limited range of force sensing. However, when the FBG is embedded into some composite material, the sensor exhibits excellent linearity, high stability and reliability over a wider force-sensing range, making it a potentially viable sensing element. When an FBG is embedded into some fiber-reinforced composites, a level of sensing force of up to 60N with a sensitivity of 3.96 pm/N and resolution of 1pm (equivalent to 0.8με) is achievable without causing permanent deformation to the FBG.