Fiber Optic Sensors favors better in photoacoustic microscopy

Fiber Optic Sensors in photoacoustic microscopyA Chinese team of researchers has created a new twist on fiber optic sensors. It promotes the development of a smart flexible photoacoustic imaging technique, which is regarded as a way to enlarge new applications in portable devices, instrumentation, and medical diagnostics.

The operation of the new ultrasound sensor is based on fiber lasers that rely on fiber optic technology to manufacture fiber sensors for photoacoustic imaging. To be more precise, these fiber laser systems apply fiber optic ultrasound determination, utilizing the acoustic effects on laser beam pulses via the thermoelastic effect (temperature changes).

The thing is that traditional fiber optic sensors trace very weak signals due to their high sensitivity via phase measurement. Herewith, this type of fiber sensor can be employed for military purposes to find low-frequency (kilohertz) acoustic waves. Nevertheless, they provide weak operation for “ultrasound waves at the megahertz frequencies used for medical applications because ultrasound waves usually propagate as spherical waves and have a very limited interaction length with optical fibers”.

It should be noted that the main application of the novel fiber sensors is medical imaging, herein, they offer better sensitivity than the piezoelectric transducers in use today. Components of a special ultrasound fiber optic sensor include a portable fiber laser set in the 8-micron-diameter core of a single-mode optical fiber. The standard length of the fiber optic system is only 8 millimeters.

The team uses two highly reflective fiber Bragg grating mirrors written into the fiber core to achieve optical feedback to manufacture the fiber laser. Then they dope the optical fiber with ytterbium and erbium to result in efficient optical gain at 1,530 nanometers. Additionally, a 980-nanometer semiconductor laser operates as the pump laser.

The applications of such fiber laser systems with a kilohertz-order linewidth (the width of the optical spectrum) can include their use as fiber sensors, so they provide a high signal-to-noise ratio. Also, ultrasound detection takes advantage of the combined methods because side-incident ultrasound waves spoil the optical fiber, modulating the laser beam frequency.

The fiber optic sensors based on fiber lasers are highly promising for application in photoacoustic microscopy. The team applies a 532-nm nanosecond pulsed laser to illuminate a sample and excite ultrasound signals leading to a photoacoustic image of the vessels and capillaries. Moreover, it is possible to use the fiber optic system for structural imaging of other tissues and functional imaging of oxygen distribution by employing other excitation wavelengths.

Optromix is a manufacturer of innovative fiber optic products for the global market. The company provides the most technologically advanced fiber optic solutions for clients. Optromix produces a wide range of fiber optic devices, including cutting-edge customized fiber optic Bragg grating product line and fiber Bragg grating sensor systems. Moreover, Optromix is a top choice among the manufacturers of fiber Bragg grating monitoring systems. If you have any questions, please contact us at info@optromix.com

Devices based on fiber optic technology

Optical fibers are flexible waveguides of the optical range. Usually made of some kind of glass, they can potentially be very long (achieving hundreds of kilometers). Quartz glass is most often used for the manufacture of optical fibers because of its unique properties, in particular:

  • extremely low energy losses of radiation propagating in it (realized only in ultra-pure material);
  • surprisingly high mechanical tensile and bending strength.

Most optical fibers used in laser optics have a core with a refractive index slightly higher than that of the outer layer (the so-called shell).  Light introduced into the optical fiber is distributed mainly in the region of its core, although some of the radiation can also penetrate into the shell. Light is retained in the fiber due to the effect of full internal reflection at the border of regions with different refractive index, or due to the gradient of the refractive index in the core of the optical fiber. 

They less commonly use fibers that implement a different principle of light retention in them. Such optical fibers are based on the fiber Bragg grating structures and photonic crystals to form a photonic stop-band. This technique is fundamentally different from the method of retaining light in conventional fibers.

To be more precise, a fiber Bragg grating is a periodic or aperiodic perturbation of the effective refractive index in the fiber core. As a rule, the Bragg grating has a length of about a few millimeters or centimeters. The width of the reflection band of the fiber Bragg grating, which is usually much less than 1 nm, depends on both the length of the Bragg grating and the depth of the refractive index modulation. Narrow-band gratings required, for example, for the manufacture of single-frequency fiber lasers or for certain optical filters can be obtained using long gratings with weak modulation. Wide reflection bands can be obtained on short Bragg gratings with deep modulation, but also on gratings with aperiodic modulation.

Since the maximum reflection wavelength depends not only on the Bragg grating period but also on temperature and mechanical stresses, fiber Bragg gratings can be used in temperature and stress sensors. Transverse stresses compress the optical fibers of gratings between two flat plates, inducing birefringence and thus causing the Bragg wavelength to depend on polarization.

Additionally, fiber Bragg gratings are often used for the development of fiber optic sensors. Fiber optic sensors are fiber optic systems for detecting certain factors, usually temperature or mechanical stress, but sometimes also displacement, vibration, pressure, acceleration, rotation, and chemical concentrations. 

Optromix is a fast-growing vendor of fiber Bragg grating (FBG) product line such as fiber Bragg grating sensors, FBG interrogators and multiplexers, Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS) systems, Distributed Temperature Sensing (DTS) systems. The company creates and supplies a broad variety of fiber optic solutions for monitoring worldwide. If you are interested in structural health monitoring systems and want to learn more, please contact us at info@optromix.com

Tapered optical fibers change the future of laser system processing

Nowadays new fiber laser technology allows transmitting multikilowatt power, ultrashort pulse durations, repetition rates up to 1 GHz, and high laser beam quality in a compact version. The thing is that the ultrafast laser system with pulse durations in the femtosecond and picosecond range is widely used in numerous industrial processes. 

Benefits of these fiber lasers provided high-quality, virtually athermal materials processing combining with developments in fiber laser technology, process development, laser beam handling, and delivery, enlarge fields for many advanced scientific and industrial applications. Nevertheless, tapered optical fibers provide high laser beam power with perfect beam features in a space-effective format, herewith, at not expensive production costs that are slightly more than traditional optical fibers.

Thus, these ultrafast fiber laser systems offer fast industrial performance by transmitting fast investment returns from high processing speed and accuracy. It should be noted that the rapid rise in output laser beam power due to rare-earth-doped optical fiber allows designing new fiber optic systems with perfect performance (high laser beam quality, overall efficiency, and flexibility in operating wavelength and radiation format).

The thing is that current fiber optic technologies promote creating new configurations as well, however, the cost of solid-state gain material is high, combined with thermal management challenges cause crucial obstacles to its widespread application. The popularity of pulsed laser systems increases every day. Solid-state, disk, and fiber lasers are considered to be the most potential versions for high-average-power generation, herein, fiber laser systems are in advance.

Compared to solid-state and disk laser systems, fiber lasers provide such advantages as compactness, robustness, efficiency, ease of thermal management, and reliable laser beam quality. Additionally, fiber laser systems have greatly lower production and maintenance costs beneficial for pico- and femtosecond high-repetition-rate kilowatt-level laser beam development. Modern high-average-power fiber lasers usually apply chirped-pulse amplification.

Nevertheless, even amplifiers based on fiber optic technology can provoke very high optical peak intensities leading to detrimental nonlinear laser beam pulse distortion or even destruction of the gain medium or other optical fiber elements. Moreover, there are various nonlinear effects (self-phase modulation, stimulated Raman scattering, mode instabilities, and poor output laser beam quality) that increase in pulsed high-power laser systems limiting their performance. The promising solution is the increase in the core diameter of the optical fiber.

Optromix is a fast-growing fiber laser manufacturer and a vendor of optical fiber sensors and optical monitoring systems. The company offers fast turnkey solutions and creates sophisticated fiber laser systems for special purposes. Optromix uses only its technologies and develops a broad variety of fiber lasers. If you have any questions or would like to buy a laser system, please contact us at info@optromix.com

CIM Convention & EXPO Conference Montreal, Canada

Founded in 1898, the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy, and Petroleum (CIM) is the leading technical society of professionals in the Canadian Minerals, Metals, Materials and Energy Industries.

CIM has always maintained three main objectives:

  • to facilitate the exchange of knowledge and technology;
  • to foster networking, professional development, and fraternity;
  • to recognize excellence and outstanding achievements in the minerals industry.

The CIM EXPO is Canada’s largest mining exhibition, covering all areas of mining from exploration to enrichment of minerals mined. The exhibition was attended by 450 companies, primarily Canadian, as well as from the US and Europe. CIM Convention & EXPO Conference took place from April 30 to May 3, 2017, in Montreal, Canada. Over 6,000 mining industry professionals took part in the events at the Palais Des Congrès De Montréal.

Optromix Company was represented by Sergey Ivanov and Gleb Phillin. Our company was attracted by the opportunity to talk with Canadian gold mining companies. The important participants for our company was Agnico Eagle, Richmont, and Teck.

The main goal of the Optromix company was to attract customers, enhance and maintain a positive corporate image. The Canadian Mining Expo is the great opportunity for mining companies who provide important services such as drilling equipment, trucks, health and safety equipment and procedures, mining exploration technology, and more.

SME 2016 Exhibition, Phoenix, Arizona 23-24 SME Phoenix

 

Founded in 1898, the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy, and Petroleum (CIM) is the leading technical society of professionals in the Canadian Minerals, Metals, Materials and Energy Industries.

Fibreglass exterior doors won’t delaminate, split or rot like wood. They offer an advantage in that fiberglass can easily be manufactured in a wider variety of shapes, textures, and new design treatments, down to accurately replicating real wood grain

The language learning expert: Kai
The language learning expert: Kai

The friends set themselves the challenge of learning a language in a week in order to stretch themselves, and then it was a question of choosing which language to learn. English presented itself as a natural option; there are nigh on 300,000 English speakers in Germany’s capital, and the areas are dotted with stores adorned with signs in English.

“TRULY UNDERSTANDING ONE’S ENVIRONMENT REQUIRES ONE TO FIRST UNDERSTAND ENGLISH”

The first operational step in the friends learning process was to decorate the entire apartment with sticky notes. This had an almost ceremonial touch to it as the friends delved into dictionaries and proceeded to label everything with its corresponding English name.

Within the space of about an hour it was impossible to carry out any menial task, be it making a coffee or flicking off a light switch, without first being presented with at least three different words related to this action.

The friends simply switched their everyday conversations to English
The friends simply switched their everyday conversations to English

The importance of the other twin’s presence became immediately apparent as Katy and Sara delegated responsibilities for rooms to decorate with sticky notes. This simple task was augmented by continuous little tests that they would spring on one another, and the fact that they split up their day slightly differently and studied different topics meant that each twin became a source of knowledge for the other.

The most extraordinary moment came towards the end of the week!

The friends simply switched their everyday conversations to English, asking one another if they wanted tea or coffee, were ready to cook dinner or when they were going to leave the house.

Katy and Sara had numerous micro-challenges throughout the week. On the first day they were visited by a English friend who greeted them in English and complimented them on how quickly they’d picked up their first words and phrases.

They then learned the names of fruits and the numbers from one to a billion so that they could visit the English market (although they refrained from purchasing nine hundred thousand kumquats). Displaying their haul after their first functional exchange in English, they beamed with pride and a palpable sense of accomplishment before marching back home to study further.

There is no definitive method to learn a language fluently
There is no definitive method to learn a language fluently

On our second visit to the brother’s apartment 24 hours into the week, we found them sampling dozens of different kinds of English snacks.

Like kids staring at the backs of cereal packs before heading to school, the nutritional information and various special offers and competitions on the packaging were analysed during snack breaks.

There was no moment of complete removal from the language learning process during the eight hours that the friends had allotted to it.

They were constantly using their existing knowledge to support the ever-growing knowledge of English, this being the root of their success.

“YOU WILL LIKELY COME ACROSS WORDS THAT SHARE COMMON ORIGINS WITH YOUR NATIVE TONGUE”

The friends spent a lot of time engrossed in books or on their computers and apps, flicking and swiping their way through exercises eagerly, but at other times they were to be found searching busily for English radio stations and write-ups of English football games on the web.

All too often, people enter their weekly language class to converse with their teacher, but then barely have any contact with other speakers and that’s not enough.

The old saying that we can solve problems more effectively when we sleep on it may be especially true if the problem we’re trying to solve is learning a new language.

The researchers then re-gathered both
The researchers then re-gathered both

The researchers added a techie dimension by conducting electroencephalographic (EEG)recordings of the sleeping participants brains to track neural electrical activity during the learning period.

They found that learning the foreign words overlapped with the appearance of theta brain waves, an intriguing result since theta is the brain wave state often associated with heightened learning while awake (usually we’re in either the high-frequency, high-alertness alpha or beta states while awake, but it’s thought possible to induce theta state slower in frequency than alpha and beta through concentration techniques).

TMS 2016 Exhibition, Nashville,Tennessee 15-16 February

The TMS Annual Meeting & Exhibition brings together more than 4,000 business leaders, engineers, scientists, and other professionals and students from around the world. The exhibition is focused on the latest advancements in research of minerals, metals and material fields. The main goal is to promote networking and exchange of technical knowledge that should lead to creating new collaborations, innovations and different solutions in the workplace and in the society. The TMS annual meeting participants discussed various aspects of the metals industry, including materials testing and characterization as well as current and emerging materials. The exhibition held at the Music City Center in downtown Nashville, Tennessee.

CIM Convention & EXPO Conference Montreal, Canada

Founded in 1898, the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy, and Petroleum (CIM) is the leading technical society of professionals in the Canadian Minerals, Metals, Materials and Energy Industries.

CIM has always maintained three main objectives:

  • to facilitate the exchange of knowledge and technology;
  • to foster networking, professional development, and fraternity;
  • to recognize excellence and outstanding achievements in the minerals industry.

The CIM EXPO is Canada’s largest mining exhibition, covering all areas of mining from exploration to enrichment of minerals mined. The exhibition was attended by 450 companies, primarily Canadian, as well as from the US and Europe. CIM Convention & EXPO Conference took place from April 30 to May 3, 2017, in Montreal, Canada. Over 6,000 mining industry professionals took part in the events at the Palais Des Congrès De Montréal.

Optromix Company was represented by Sergey Ivanov and Gleb Phillin. Our company was attracted by the opportunity to talk with Canadian gold mining companies. The important participants for our company was Agnico Eagle, Richmont, and Teck.

The main goal of the Optromix company was to attract customers, enhance and maintain a positive corporate image. The Canadian Mining Expo is the great opportunity for mining companies who provide important services such as drilling equipment, trucks, health and safety equipment and procedures, mining exploration technology, and more.