Multicore optical fibre embedded Fabry–Perot sensing element of a bend sensor

Abstract

We propose a new type of a sensing element of a sensor for measuring the bending direction and magnitude, based on fibre Fabry–Perot interferometers embedded in the cores of multicore optical fibre. The measured sensitivity to the bend radius is 81 pm/m-1. It is found that this sensitivity can be increased by varying the diameters of the optical fibres forming the sensing element.