Temperature sensor based on curable polymer infiltrated photonic crystal fiber

The realization and characterization of an all-solid photonic bandgap fiber (AS-PBF) with a compact size of about 10 mm by means of fully infiltrating an ultraviolet (UV) curable polymer with a high refractive index of 1.515 into air holes of a photonic crystal fiber (PCF) is demonstrated. It appears to a high wavelength sensitivity of up to -4.034 nm/°C. Compared with conventional fluid filled PBFs, the proposed AS-PBF can be stable to temperature and other environmental effects and maintain a large extinction ratio of more than 30 dB within a broad wavelength. Moreover, the splicing between the AS-PBF and single mode fibers has been solved.