Latest developments in silica-based thermoluminescence spectrometry and dosimetry

Using irradiated doped-silica preforms from which fibres for thermoluminescence dosimetry applications can be fabricated we have carried out a range of luminescence studies, the TL yield of the fibre systems offering many advantages over conventional passive dosimetry types. In this paper we investigate such media, showing emission spectra for irradiated preforms and the TL response of glass beads following irradiation to an Am-241-Be neutron source located in a tank of water, the glass fibres and beads offering the advantage of being able to be placed directly into liquid. The outcomes from these and other lines of research are intended to inform development of doped silica radiation dosimeters of versatile utility, extending from environmental evaluations through to clinical and industrial applications. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserve

Development of Photonic Crystal Fiber Based Gas/ Chemical Sensors

The development of highly-sensitive and miniaturized sensors that capable of real-time analytes detection is highly desirable. Nowadays, toxic or colorless gas detection, air pollution monitoring, harmful chemical, pressure, strain, humidity, and temperature sensors based on photonic crystal fiber (PCF) are increasing rapidly due to its compact structure, fast response and efficient light controlling capabilities. The propagating light through the PCF can be controlled by varying the structural parameters and core-cladding materials, as a result, evanescent field can be enhanced significantly which is the main component of the PCF based gas/chemical sensors. The aim of this chapter is to (1) describe the principle operation of PCF based gas/ chemical sensors, (2) discuss the important PCF properties for optical sensors, (3) extensively discuss the different types of microstructured optical fiber based gas/ chemical sensors, (4) study the effects of different core-cladding shapes, and fiber background materials on sensing performance, and (5) highlight the main challenges of PCF based gas/ chemical sensors and possible solutions

Characterization of transient response in a fiber grating fabry-perot lasers

A comprehensive study on the transient response of fiber-grating Fabry Perot (FGFP) laser is numerically conducted. Fiber Bragg grating (FBG) is used as a wavelength selective element to control the external optical feedback (OFB) level. In addition to the external OFB level, the effect of other external cavity parameters such as temperature, injection current, dc-bias level, coupling coefficient, and gain compression factor on transient response characteristics of the laser are investigated. The temperature dependence (TD) of response characteristics is calculated according to TD of laser parameters instead of well-known Pankove relationship. Results show that, by increasing the laser injection current, the relaxation oscillation�s amplitude, frequency, and damping rate are increased, while the laser turn-on time delay is reduced. In addition to the injection current and dc-bias level, the turn-on time delay can be reduced by increasing OFB reflectivity. It is shown that the optimum external fiber length ðLext� is 3.1 cm and the optimum range of working temperature for FGFP laser is within �2 �C from the FBG reference temperature ðTo�. Also, it is shown that antireflection (AR) coating facet reflectivity value of 1 � 10�2 is sufficient for the laser to operate at good response characteristics with low fabrication complexity

70-Gb/s amplitude-shift-keyed system with 10-GHz clock recovery circuit using duty cycle division multiplexing

The performance of ASK over DCDM for up to seven channels is reported. The aggregate bit rate of 70 Gb/s is achieved with only 160-GHz modulation bandwidth. The clock and data recovery are realized at 10-GHz clock rate, which is very economic and efficient. At 7 � 10 Gb/s, the worst receiver sensitivity of�10 dBm, OSNR of 41.5 dB and chromatic dispersion tolerance of ±17 ps/nm are achieved. Whereas, for the best channel, the receiver sensitivity,OSNR, and chromatic dispersion tolerance are �23.5dBm, 29dB, and ±36 ps/nm, respectively

Photonic Crystal Fiber-Based Surface Plasmon Resonance Sensor with Selective Analyte Channels and Graphene-Silver Deposited Core

We propose a surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensor based on photonic crystal fiber (PCF) with selectively filled analyte channels. Silver is used as the plasmonic material to accurately detect the analytes and is coated with a thin graphene layer to prevent oxidation. The liquid-filled cores are placed near to the metallic channel for easy excitation of free electrons to produce surface plasmon waves (SPWs). Surface plasmons along the metal surface are excited with a leaky Gaussian-like core guided mode. Numerical investigations of the fiber’s properties and sensing performance are performed using the finite element method (FEM). The proposed sensor shows maximum amplitude sensitivity of 418 Refractive Index Units (RIU−1) with resolution as high as 2.4 × 10−5 RIU. Using the wavelength interrogation method, a maximum refractive index (RI) sensitivity of 3000 nm/RIU in the sensing range of 1.46–1.49 is achieved. The proposed sensor is suitable for detecting various high RI chemicals, biochemical and organic chemical analytes. Additionally, the effects of fiber structural parameters on the properties of plasmonic excitation are investigated and optimized for sensing performance as well as reducing the sensor’s footprint

High sensitivity flat SiO fibres for medical dosimetry

We describe investigation of a novel undoped flat fibre fabricated for medical radiation dosimetry. Using high energy X-ray beams generated at a potential of 6MV, comparison has been made of the TL yield of silica flat fibres, TLD-100 chips and Ge-doped silica fibres. The flat fibres provide competitive TL yield to that of TLD-100 chips, being some 100 times that of the Ge-doped fibres. Pt-coated flat fibres have then been used to increase photoelectron production and hence local dose deposition, obtaining significant increase in dose sensitivity over that of undoped flat fibres. Using 250kVp X-ray beams, the TL yield reveals a progressive linear increase in dose for Pt thicknesses from 20nm up to 80nm. The dose enhancement factor (DEF) of (0.0150±0.0003)nm Pt is comparable to that obtained using gold, agreeing at the 1% level with the value expected on the basis of photoelectron generation. Finally, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) has been employed to characterize the surface oxidation state of the fibre medium. The charge state of Si2p was found to lie on 103.86eV of binding energy and the atomic percentage obtained from the XPS analysis is 22.41%. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd

Latest developments in silica-based thermoluminescence spectrometry and dosimetry.

Using irradiated doped-silica preforms from which fibres for thermoluminescence dosimetry applications can be fabricated we have carried out a range of luminescence studies, the TL yield of the fibre systems offering many advantages over conventional passive dosimetry types. In this paper we investigate such media, showing emission spectra for irradiated preforms and the TL response of glass beads following irradiation to an (241)Am-Be neutron source located in a tank of water, the glass fibres and beads offering the advantage of being able to be placed directly into liquid. The outcomes from these and other lines of research are intended to inform development of doped silica radiation dosimeters of versatile utility, extending from environmental evaluations through to clinical and industrial applications