Optical micro- and nanofibers for sensing applications

摘要

An optical microfiber is usually fabricated by drawing a conventional optical fiber and has a diameter of ～1 μm. A microfiber with a diameter significantly less than one micron is often called a nanofiber. This paper considers the potential applications of optical microfibers/nanofibers as sensors, which detect changes in the ambient medium by monitoring changes in the transmission power of light propagating along the MF. These changes may be caused by variation in temperature, radiation, concentration of chemical or biological species, microparticles, etc.