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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Radiation Characterization of Optical Frequency Domain Reflectometry Fiber-Based Distributed Sensors

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description

International audience; We studied the responses of fiber-basedtemperature and strain sensors related to Optical FrequencyDomain Reflectometry (OFDR) and exposed to high γ-ray dosesup to 10 MGy. Three different commercial fiber classes areused to investigate the evolution of OFDR parameters withdose, thermal treatment and fiber core/cladding composition.We find that the fiber coating is affected by both thermal andradiation treatments and this modification results in anevolution of the internal stress distribution inside the fiber that influences its temperature and strain Rayleigh coefficients. These two environmental parameters introduce a relative error up to 5% on temperature and strain measures. This uncertainty can be reduced down to 0.5% if a pre-thermal treatment at 80°C and/or a pre-irradiation up to 3 MGy are performed before insertion of the fiber in the harsh environment of interest. These preliminary results demonstrate that OFDR fiber-based distributed sensors look as promising devices to be integrated in radiation environments with associated large ionizing doses.