Dependence of temperature and strain coefficients on fibre grating type and application to simultaneous temperature and strain measurement

We report an investigation of the dependence of the temperature and strain coefficients on the grating type for fiber Bragg gratings that are UV inscribed in B/Ge-codoped fiber with and without hydrogenation. The results reveal that all types of grating exhibit similar strain sensitivities but markedly different temperature sensitivities, greater for gratings inscribed in hydrogen-free rather than hydrogenated fiber and substantially less in type IA gratings than all others. The sensitivity characteristics of these gratings have been used to implement a new type of dual-grating sensor for simultaneous measurement of temperature and strain that has properties superior to those of previously reported structures.