Enabling Simultaneous DAS and DTS Through Space-Division Multiplexing Based on Multicore Fiber

We have proposed and demonstrated a hybrid optical-fiber sensor that enables simultaneous distributed acoustic sensing (DAS) and distributed temperature sensing (DTS). The hybrid fiber sensor is realized through space-division multiplexed (SDM) reflectometers in a multicore fiber (MCF), where Raman optical time-domain reflectometry (ROTDR) for DTS is implemented simultaneously with phase-sensitive optical time-domain reflectometry (Φ-OTDR) for DAS through space-division multiplexing. The SDM reflectometers share an identical pulse source, but use separate interrogation fiber cores, allowing simultaneous measurement of ROTDR and Φ-OTDR. The proposed hybrid sensor based on MCF does not suffer from the incompatible pump power levels issue existing in its counterpart based on single mode fiber thanks to the SDM implementation. Thus it effectively eliminates the restriction imposed by fiber nonlinear effects (e.g., modulation instability). Wavelet transform denoising method is employed to reduce the noise of temporal ROTDR traces; as a result, the worst temperature uncertainty is reduced from 4.1 to 0.5 °C over 5.76 km sensing range. The proposed SDM hybrid fiber sensor can realize simultaneous distributed intrusion detection and temperature monitoring. It offers great potential in long-term real-time pipeline monitoring for oil and gas industry.