A Novel Optical Accelerometer Based on Slant-Ended Fiber

We demonstrate a novel optical accelerometer based on slant-ended fiber. The accelerometer has an ingenious structure and is easy to manufacture, which consists of single mode fiber (SMF), slant-ended fiber, ceramic ferrule and ceramic sleeve. The SMF plays a role of cantilever beam in the work of the accelerometer, and the light emitted from the SMF is received by the slant-ended fiber. The slant-ended fiber is provided by a fiber angled physical contact (APC) connector, which not only reduces the cost but also greatly simplifies the manufacturing process. The acceleration can be directly obtained by monitoring the transmission intensity of the sensor. The experimental results show that the prototype of the optical accelerometer has a sensitivity of 0.475 V/g at the working frequency from 30 Hz to 700 Hz and a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of 58 dB. Further, the transverse sensitivity is 4 mV/g and the self-noise is
$6.77 ~ \mu \mathrm{V} / \sqrt{\mathrm{Hz}}$
at 500 Hz. In addition, it is found that the optical accelerometer has good stability, repeatability and phase-frequency characteristic. The ingenious structure and simple fabrication make it have the potential for cost-effective application.