Characterisation of the FBGS Infinityscan®, a code-division multiplexing interrogator for precision and dynamic scanning

A new fiber optic interrogator has been developed that relies on the principles of Code-Division Multiplexing (CDM), called the ‘FBGS InfinityScan®’. It can measure the wavelengths of multiple wavelength-division multiplexed (WDM) sections of Draw Tower Gratings (DTG®s) in series. Wavelength precision measurements and wavelength accuracy estimations for dynamic measurements have been done with this interrogator and will be reported. The precision measurements show that the position of the WDM section in the fiber does not have a significant impact on the measured value. The accuracy estimations for dynamic measurements are compared with a theoretical model and good correspondence has been found. Possible system improvements are proposed to find a suitable compromise between detection accuracy and system speed for large optical sensor networks.