Sagnac interferometric sensor array for acoustic sensing and method of detecting acoustic signals

Abstract

The present invention relates to a Sagnac interferometric sensor array for acoustic sensing and method of sensing acoustic signal that is able to observe acoustic signals coming from several sources simultaneously. The acoustic sensor of the present invention is a Sagnac interferometric sensor array employing a depolarizer. Unlike a single Sagnac interferometric sensor, two light signals traveling in the opposite directions from each other pass through the off-center position of the loop at different times in the Sagnac loop when they are pulses, and thus, it is possible for the light pulses to be maintained at a constant phase difference by giving arbitrarily a certain amount of phase to them. By using the fact, the interferometer is constructed in such a way that the interference light output coincides with the applied acoustic signals in waveform. This invention suggests a way of fabricating an array of fiber-optic acoustic sensors that is easy to be made and is highly sensitive at some frequency band.