Optical biosensors have exhibited worthwhile performance in detecting biological systems and promoting significant advances in clinical diagnostics, drug discovery, food process control, and environmental monitoring. Without complexity in their pretreatment and probable influence on the nature of target molecules, these biosensors have additional advantages such as high sensitivity, robustness, reliability, and potential to be integrated on a single chip. In this review, the state of the art optical biosensor technologies, including those based on surface plasmon resonance (SPR), optical waveguides, optical resonators, photonic crystals, and optical fibers, are presented. The principles for each type of biosensor are concisely introduced and particular emphasis has been placed on recent achievements. The strengths and weaknesses of each type of biosensor have been outlined as well. Concluding remarks regarding the perspectives of future developments are discussed.

Optical biosensors: an exhaustive and comprehensive review.

Ultrafast fiber lasers have significant applications in ultra-precision manufacturing, medical diagnostics, medical treatment, precision measurement and astronomical detection, owing to their ultra-short pulse width and ultra-high peak-power. Since graphene was first explored as an optical saturable absorber for passively mode-locked lasers in 2009, many other 2D materials beyond graphene, including phosphorene, antimonene, bismuthene, transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), topological insulators (TIs), metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) and MXenes, have been successively explored, resulting in rapid development of novel 2D materials-based saturable absorbers. Herein, we review the latest progress of the emerging 2D materials beyond graphene for passively mode-locked fiber laser application. These 2D materials are classified into mono-elemental, dual-elemental and multi-elemental 2D materials. The atomic structure, band structure, nonlinear optical properties, and preparation methods of 2D materials are summarized. Diverse integration strategies for applying 2D materials into fiber laser systems are introduced, and the mode-locking performance of the 2D materials-based fiber lasers working at 1–3 μm are discussed. Finally, the perspectives and challenges facing 2D materials-based mode-locked fiber lasers are highlighted.

Emerging 2D materials beyond graphene for ultrashort pulse generation in fiber lasers.

Time-delayed optoelectronic oscillators are at the center of a large body of scientific literature. The complex behavior of these nonlinear oscillators has been thoroughly explored both theoretically and experimentally, leading to a better understanding of their dynamical properties. Beyond fundamental research, these systems have also inspired a wide and diverse set of applications, such as optical chaos communications, pseudorandom number generation, optoelectronic machine learning based on reservoir computing, ultrapure microwave generation, optical pulse-train synthesis, and sensing. The aim of this review is to provide a comprehensive survey of this field, to outline the latest achievements, and discuss the main challenges ahead.

Optoelectronic oscillators with time-delayed feedback

A novel parallel structured fiber-optic Fabry-Perot interferometer (FPI) based on Vernier-effect is theoretically proposed and experimentally demonstrated for ultrasensitive strain measurement. This proposed sensor consists of open-cavity and closed-cavity fiber-optic FPI, both of which are connected in parallel via a 3 dB coupler. The open-cavity is implemented for sensing, while the closed-cavity for reference. Experimental results show that the proposed parallel structured fiber-optic FPI can provide an ultra-high strain sensitivity of −43.2 pm/μe, which is 4.6 times higher than that of a single open-cavity FPI. Furthermore, the sensor is simple in fabrication, robust in structure, and stable in measurement. Finally, the parallel structured fiber-optic FPI scheme proposed in this paper can also be applied to other sensing field, and provide a new perspective idea for high sensitivity sensing.

Ultrasensitive strain sensor based on Vernier- effect improved parallel structured fiber-optic Fabry-Perot interferometer

In 2016, a novel interrogation technique for phase-sensitive (Φ)OTDR was mathematically formalized and experimentally demonstrated, based on the use of a chirped-pulse as a probe, in an otherwise direct-detection-based standard setup: chirped-pulse (CP-)ΦOTDR. Despite its short lifetime, this methodology has now become a reference for distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) due to its valuable advantages with respect to conventional (i.e., coherent-detection or frequency sweeping-based) interrogation strategies. Presenting intrinsic immunity to fading points and using direct detection, CP-ΦOTDR presents reliable high sensitivity measurements while keeping the cost and complexity of the setup bounded. Numerous technique analyses and contributions to study/improve its performance have been recently published, leading to a solid, highly competitive and extraordinarily simple method for distributed fibre sensing. The interesting sensing features achieved in these last years CP-ΦOTDR have motivated the use of this technology in diverse applications, such as seismology or civil engineering (monitoring of pipelines, train rails, etc.). Besides, new areas of application of this distributed sensor have been explored, based on distributed chemical (refractive index) and temperature-based transducer sensors. In this review, the principle of operation of CP-ΦOTDR is revisited, highlighting the particular performance characteristics of the technique and offering a comparison with alternative distributed sensing methods (with focus on coherent-detection-based ΦOTDR). The sensor is also characterized for operation in up to 100 km with a low cost-setup, showing performances close to the attainable limits for a given set of signal parameters [≈tens-hundreds of pe/sqrt(Hz)]. The areas of application of this sensing technology employed so far are briefly outlined in order to frame the technology.

Distributed Acoustic Sensing Using Chirped-Pulse Phase-Sensitive OTDR Technology

An ultrafast high-sensitivity refractive index (RI) and temperature-sensing system based on an optoelectronic oscillator (OEO) is proposed and demonstrated in this paper. A Fabry–Perot fiber Bragg grating (FP-FBG), which combines a gap with two FBGs in a silica V-shaped slot and characterizes a narrow notch in the reflection spectrum, is incorporated in the OEO to implement a microwave photonic filter and perform oscillating frequency selection. A microwave signal is generated by the OEO, whose oscillating frequency is determined by the center frequency of the FP-FBG notch, which varies with the surrounding environments. The RI or the temperature change can be accordingly measured by monitoring the frequency shift of the microwave signal using an electrical spectrum analyzer or a digital signal processor. An experiment is performed to verify the proposal. An RI sensitivity of 413.8 MHz/0.001RIU and a temperature sensitivity of 2516 MHz/°C are successively demonstrated.

Refractive Index and Temperature Sensing Based on an Optoelectronic Oscillator Incorporating a Fabry–Perot Fiber Bragg Grating

A novel optical fiber magnetic field sensor based on D-shaped fiber modal interferometer and magnetic fluid is proposed and experimentally investigated. Thanks to the etched cladding of D-shaped fiber, the resulting interference is strongly influenced by the surrounding magnetic fluid, which leads to a high magnetic field sensitivity. Simultaneous measurement of the magnetic field and temperature was realized by monitoring the wavelength shift of the two resonance dips at the same time. In the experiment, the magnetic field and temperature sensitivity can reach 99.68 pm/Oe and −77.49 pm/°C, respectively. The proposed magnetic field sensor based on D-shaped fiber is featured with high sensitivity, low cost and simple configuration.

Magnetic field and temperature sensor based on D-shaped fiber modal interferometer and magnetic fluid

A novel D-shaped fiber structure combined with a fiber Bragg grating for refractive index (RI) and temperature sensing is proposed and experimentally investigated. Thanks to the etched cladding of D-shaped fiber, the resulting interference is strongly influenced by the surrounding refractive index. By monitoring the dip wavelength of D-shaped fiber structure, the refractive index can be measured. Theoretical analysis and simulations were conducted to investigate the cladding mode propagating behavior influenced by the surrounding RI. Combined with the temperature sensing property of fiber Bragg grating (FBG), the possibility of simultaneously measuring the RI and temperature relies on monitoring the resonance dip of the D-shaped fiber modal interferometer and the Bragg wavelength of the FBG. Experimental results showed that the RI sensitivity of −31.79 nm/RIU within the range of 1.333 ~ 1.428, and a temperature sensitivity of 28.7 pm/°C can be obtained. The proposed sensor with simple configuration, low cost and easy fabrication is suitable for refractive index and temperature sensing applications.

Refractive Index and Temperature Sensor Based on D-Shaped Fiber Combined With a Fiber Bragg Grating

A novel coreless-D-shape-coreless (CDC) fiber structure for liquid-level sensing is proposed and experimentally investigated. The D-shape fiber with cladding partially etched is sensitive to the ambient refractive index change and the CDC structure transmission dip wavelength shifts related to the length of D-shape fiber immersed in the liquid, so liquid level is measured by monitoring the dip wavelength. The sensitivities for three different liquids with the RIs of 1.333, 1.355, and 1.377 are 191.89, 208.11, and 213.80 pm/mm, respectively. The temperature influence is also studied. The sensor exhibits a low-temperature cross-sensitivity of −0.128 mm/°C. The proposed modal interferometer based on the D-shape fiber with high sensitivity, low cost, and easy fabrication is suitable to liquid-level sensing applications.

An Optical Liquid-Level Sensor Based on D-Shape Fiber Modal Interferometer

A fiber sensor is proposed and demonstrated for strain and temperature discrimination by inserting two sections of a commercialized panda-type polarization maintaining fiber in a Sagnac loop. The proposed sensor employs only one type of commercialized high birefringent fiber and includes no complicated fabrication process. It tends to be a simple and cost-effective alternative to other Sagnac interferometers used for simultaneous measurement of strain and temperature. The strain and temperature sensitivities of the sensor are both theoretically discussed and experimentally measured. Experimental results show that the sensor is capable of obtaining both high sensitivities up to −1.495 nm/°C and 20.67 pm/μe and low discrimination errors of ±0.13 °C and ±14.06 μe respectively for temperature and strain. The sensor has much potential in applications which require low cost, easy fabrication as well as high temperature- and strain- sensitivities and good discrimination accuracies.

Shiying Xiao

Papers

Refractive Index and Temperature Sensing Based on an Optoelectronic Oscillator Incorporating a Fabry–Perot Fiber Bragg Grating

Magnetic field and temperature sensor based on D-shaped fiber modal interferometer and magnetic fluid

Refractive Index and Temperature Sensor Based on D-Shaped Fiber Combined With a Fiber Bragg Grating

An Optical Liquid-Level Sensor Based on D-Shape Fiber Modal Interferometer

Strain and temperature discrimination using two sections of PMF in Sagnac interferometer