An Asymmetrical Dual Sagnac Distributed Fiber Sensor for High Precision Localization Based on Time Delay Estimation

In this paper, the Sagnac interferometer with a one-way optical fiber ring and a novel dual Sagnac distributed fiber vibration sensor with an asymmetrical structure for disturbance localization is proposed. The two Sagnac interferometers in this system are asymmetrical and equal in the lengths of optical paths. Using time delay estimation based on cross-correlation, the disturbance localization can be calculated from the two demodulated phase signals. The localization precision is ±10 m with a 50 km sensing fiber and the overall localization error is 0.02%. The time error problem possibly existing in the fiber sensing systems based on time delay estimation is firstly studied. Due to the design of equal optical path lengths, the time error problem does not exist in this system, which is a possible reason for high localization precision. The system has application potential in long-distance perimeter security and many other fields.