A temperature sensor based on Er3+/Yb3+ co-doped tellurite fiber for real-time thermal monitoring of transformers

In this paper, a temperature sensor based on fluorescence intensity ratio (FIR) technique is prepared by the dual curing method. The pumping threshold is only 0.1 mW for the application of real-time thermal monitoring on small transformers. This not only greatly reduces the thermal effects accumulated by laser irradiation but also contributes to the integration and portability of the light source. Based on the FIR, the temperature information could be demodulated through tracking the fluorescence spectral changes. The basic temperature sensing characteristics of this sensor were evaluated, which showed that the maximum stability deviation and reproducibility error were within ±1.1 K and ±0.8 K, respectively. Notably, it has a maximum measurement error of only 0.61 K when applied to the temperature monitoring of transformers. And a fast time response of 2.1 s was exhibited in the cyclic exhalation experiment. This proposed sensor is suitable for mass production due to its resistance to electromagnetic interference, low pumping power, fast time response, excellent stability and reproducibility.