Optimization of Incident Light Polarization State in Pressure Sensing Based on Fiber Polarization Properties

The selection of the state of polarization (SOP) of incident light plays a significant role in the performance of optical fiber pressure sensor based on the polarization properties. In order to improve the sensitivity and linearity of the sensor, a simple and fast optimization scheme for optimal incident light polarization state based on Muller matrix is proposed to replace the traditional "blind adjustment" of SOP. In the experiment, with the squeezing devices based on piezoelectric ceramics and polarimeters, the optimal performance is achived with sensitivity of 0.2110 N-1 and linearity of 99.9%, which agree well with the theoretical prediction. The proposed scheme will greatly improve the performance and extend the practical applications of the sensors based on the fiber polarization properties.