NOTICE: Due to a lapse in annual appropriations, most of this website is not being updated. Learn more.
Form submissions will still be accepted but will not receive responses at this time. Sections of this site for programs using non-appropriated funds (such as NVLAP) or those that are excepted from the shutdown (such as CHIPS and NVD) will continue to be updated.
An official website of the United States government
Here’s how you know
Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock (
) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.
Uncertainty analysis for a high-spatial resolution single-mode fiber-optic distributed temperature sensor
Published
Author(s)
Shellee D. Dyer, Michael Tanner, Burm Baek, Robert Hadfield, Sae Woo Nam
Abstract
We demonstrate a high-accuracy distributed fiber optic temperature sensor using superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors and single photon counting techniques. Our demonstration uses inexpensive single-mode fiber at standard telecommunications wavelengths as the sensing fiber, which enables extremely low-loss experiments and compatibility with existing fiber networks. We show that the uncertainty of the temperature measurement decreases with longer integration periods, and that temperature uncertainty on the order of 3 K is possible with integration period as small as 60 seconds. Also, we show that the measurement exhibits unwanted polarization sensitivity, which can be reduced with a polarization diversity receiver.
Dyer, S.
, Tanner, M.
, Baek, B.
, Hadfield, R.
and Nam, S.
(2011),
Uncertainty analysis for a high-spatial resolution single-mode fiber-optic distributed temperature sensor, Optics Express, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=910008
(Accessed October 18, 2025)