Open AccessCharacterizing detection noise in phase-sensitive optical time domain reflectometry
Author(s) -
Xin Lu,
Katerina Krebber
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
optics express
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.394
H-Index - 271
ISSN - 1094-4087
DOI - 10.1364/oe.424410
Subject(s) - reflectometry , optical time domain reflectometer , optics , shot noise , noise (video) , time domain , phase noise , fiber optic sensor , amplified spontaneous emission , optical fiber , signal (programming language) , noise measurement , materials science , physics , polarization maintaining optical fiber , acoustics , computer science , noise reduction , laser , artificial intelligence , detector , image (mathematics) , computer vision , programming language
Phase-sensitive optical time domain reflectometry (φOTDR) is an excellent distributed fiber sensing technique and has been applied in various areas. Its noise is however never been comprehensively studied to the best of our knowledge. The different detection noise sources in such a sensing system are thoroughly investigated. The impacts of thermal noise, shot noise and the beat between signal and the amplified spontaneous emission from a pre-amplifier have been theoretically and experimentally demonstrated. Due to the random nature of the φOTDR signal, the detection noise demonstrates distinct features at different fiber positions in a single measurement. The theoretical analysis and the experimental result explicitly affirm most of the fiber sections, and the difference at some positions may be explained by ambient noise.