During the months of October and November, Paulo Robalinho and André Gomes, researchers at INESC TEC’s Centre for Applied Photonics (CAP), published two articles in scientific journals, for the dissemination of two world records obtained in the optical deformation sensing and refractive index, using the Vernier effect.
The work carried out by Paulo Robalinho, “Colossal enhancement of strain sensitivity using the push-pull deformation method”, was published in the IEEE Sensors Journal on October 26. In this article, the CAP researcher presents the world record of 10.000 pm/me in optical deformation sensing.
More specifically, this article addresses the use of a new technique for measuring deformation based on the push-pull method in interferometry, allowing a colossal increase in the sensitivity to deformation, through the Vernier effect. In the future, this technique may be applied to the measurement of gravitational waves.
Paulo Robalinho recently obtained a FCT grant, and his PhD research will begin in January 2021 at INESC TEC, under the scientific supervision of Orlando Frazão, also a member of the CAP.
André Gomes is the author of the article “Giant refractometric sensitivity by combining extreme optical Vernier effect and modal interference”, published in the Scientific Reports on November 09. In his work, the researcher presents the world record of 50.0000 nm/RIU in the sensing of refractive index.
The work developed by André Gomes comprehends an optical fibre capable of measuring a giant sensitivity to the refractive index, by combining the Vernier effect with multimodal interference. In the future, this research will enable measuring changes in the refractive index of molecules, particularly when exposed to external parameters, such as temperature and pressure.
André Gomes is a PhD student at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto (FCUP) and his scientific supervisor is also Orlando Frazão.
The INESC TEC researchers mentioned in this news piece are associated with FCT and UP-FCUP
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