Fiber-Optic Inclinometer Based on Taper Michelson Interferometer

A compact fiber-optic inclinometer based on a fiber-taper Michelson interferometric sensor is constructed and demonstrated. The sensor consist of a single symmetrically taper waist of 80 μm distanced 30 mm from the single-mode fiber end-tip right-angled cleaved. The amplitude of the bending angle of the fiber taper interferometer is obtained by passive interferometric interrogation based on the generation of two quadrature phase-shifted signals from two fiber Bragg gratings with different resonant wavelengths. Optical phase-to-bending sensitivity of ~ 1.13 rad/degree and a bend angle resolution of ~ 0.014 degree/√ Hz were achieved.