About the project
Inspired by recent breakthroughs, of structural monitoring systems for drones, this research aims to deliver smarter aircraft for tomorrow, by developing and integrating new ultralightweight optical fibre sensing systems.
Optical fibre sensing is uniquely suited for aerospace applications due to an ability to provide distributed, real-time monitoring of critical parameters such as strain and temperature. Its lightweight and compact design makes it ideal for integration. Light carried within the optical fibre also has immunity to electromagnetic interference, and resilience in harsh aerospace environments.
The challenge in implementing optical fibre sensing for aerospace structures surrounds the cost, size, and weight of the optical interrogator, which is the device responsible for converting optical signals from the fibre into usable data. Current interrogators are often bulky, expensive, and not optimised for integration into lightweight and space-constrained aerospace systems. These limitations make it difficult to deploy optical fibre nervous systems at scale.
This project aims to reduce the size and weight of optical interrogators by uniquely conducting the optical processing within an innovative speciality optical fibre, opposed to upon a traditional photonic chip. Leveraging state-of-the-art fibre fabrication facilities, machine learning techniques and existing expertise within our group, you will design and manufacture novel optical interrogation and validate optical processing performance.
Your research will deepen the understanding of how light can be manipulated within new speciality optical fibre. These advancements could lead to more affordable, compact, and lightweight optical interrogators that would open new applications of optical fibre sensing in aerospace. This is increasingly crucial in aerospace environments for safety and performance.
