Fiber optic sensing technologies potentially applicable for hypersonic wind tunnel harsh environments

Abstract

Advanced sensing techniques are in big demand for applications in hypersonic wind tunnel harsh environments, such as aero(thermo)dynamics measurements, thermal protection of aircraft structures, air-breathing propulsion, light-weighted and high-strength materials, etc. In comparison with traditional electromechanical or electronic sensors, the fiber optic sensors have relatively high potential to work in hypersonic wind tunnel, due to the capability of responding to a wide variety of parameters, high resolution, miniature size, high resistant to electromagnetic and radio frequency interferences, and multiplexing, and so on. This article has classified and summarized the research status and the representative achievement on the fiber optic sensing technologies, giving special attention to the summary of research status on the popular Fabry-Perot interferometric, fiber Bragg gratings and (quasi) distributed fiber optic sensors working in hypersonic wind tunnel environment, and discussed the current problems in special optical fiber sensing technologies. This article would be regarded as reference for the researchers in hypersonic wind tunnel experiment field.