Signal processing integrated with fiber-optic Vernier effect for the simultaneous measurement of relative humidity and temperature

A novel inline Fabry-Perot interferometer (FPI) for simultaneous relative humidity (RH) and temperature monitoring is proposed. The sensing probe consists of a section of hollow core Bragg fiber (HCBF) spliced with a single-mode fiber pigtail. The end-face of the HCBF is coated with Chitosan and ultraviolet optical adhesive (UVOA), forming two polymer layers using a well-designed fabrication process. The surfaces of the layers and splicing point will generate multiple-beam interference and form Vernier-effect (VE) related envelopes in the reflection spectrum. A signal processing (SP) method is proposed to demodulate the VE envelopes from a complicated superimposed raw spectrum. The principle of the SP algorithm is analyzed theoretically and verified experimentally. The sensor's RH and temperature response are studied, exhibiting a high sensitivity of about 0.437 nm/%RH and 0.29 nm/degrees C, respectively. Using a matrix obtained from experiment results, the simultaneous RH and temperature measurement is achieved. Meanwhile, the simple fabrication process, compact size and potential for higher sensitivity makes our proposed structure integrated with the SP algorithm a promising sensor for practical RH and temperature monitoring.