Sohel Rana

In this paper, we present a simple cascaded Fabry-Perot interferometer (FPI) that can be used to measure in real-time the refractive index (RI) and length variation in silica optical fibers caused due to external physical parameters, such as temperature, strain, and radiation. As a proof-of-concept, we experimentally demonstrate real-time monitoring of temperature effects on the RI and length and measure the thermo-optic coefficient (TOC) and thermal expansion coefficient (TEC) by using the cascaded FPI within a temperature range of 21–486°C. The experimental results provide a TEC of 5.53 × 10⁻⁷/°C and TOC of 4.28 × 10⁻⁶/°C within the specified temperature range. Such a simple cascaded FPI structure will enable the design of optical sensors to correct for measurement errors by understanding the change in RI and length of optical fiber caused by environment parameters.

Neutron and gamma irradiation is known to compact silica, resulting in macroscopic changes in refractive index (RI) and geometric structure. The change in RI and linear compaction in a radiation environment is caused by three well-known mechanisms: (i) radiation-induced attenuation (RIA), (ii) radiation-induced compaction (RIC), and (iii) radiation-induced emission (RIE). These macroscopic changes induce errors in monitoring physical parameters such as temperature, pressure, and strain in optical fiber-based sensors, which limit their application in radiation environments. We present a cascaded Fabry–Perot interferometer (FPI) technique to measure macroscopic properties, such as radiation-induced change in RI and length compaction in real time to actively account for sensor drift. The proposed cascaded FPI consists of two cavities: the first cavity is an air cavity, and the second is a silica cavity. The length compaction from the air cavity is used to deduce the RI change within the silica cavity. We utilize fast Fourier transform (FFT) algorithm and two bandpass filters for the signal extraction of each cavity. Inclusion of such a simple cascaded FPI structure will enable accurate determination of physical parameters under the test.

Optical fiber sensors (OFS) are a potential candidate for monitoring physical parameters in nuclear environments. However, under an irradiation field the optical response of the OFS is modified via three primary mechanisms: (i) radiation-induced attenuation (RIA), (ii) radiation-induced emission (RIE), and (iii) radiation-induced compaction (RIC). For resonance-based sensors, RIC plays a significant role in modifying their performance characteristics. In this paper, we numerically investigate independently the effects of RIC and RIA on three types of OFS widely considered for radiation environments: fiber Bragg grating (FBG), long-period grating (LPG), and Fabry-Perot (F-P) sensors. In our RIC modeling, experimentally calculated refractive index (RI) changes due to low-dose radiation are extrapolated using a power law to calculate density changes at high doses. The changes in RI and length are subsequently calculated using the Lorentz–Lorenz relation and an established empirical equation, respectively. The effects of both the change in the RI and length contraction on OFS are modeled for both low and high doses using FIMMWAVE, a commercially available vectorial mode solver. An in-depth understanding of how radiation affects OFS may reveal various potential OFS applications in several types of radiation environments, such as nuclear reactors or in space.

In this paper, we computationally investigate the effects of metal coating length and coating coverage on the reflected spectrum of a long period grating (LPG) over a broad bandwidth. Simulation results indicate that coating the tail end of the fiber between the LPG and the end facet of the fiber provides a reflected spectrum that mimics the LPG transmission spectrum shape over a 400 nm bandwidth. Based on single LPG simulation results, we present the design of a distributed LPG structure containing a multiple number (n) of LPGs in reflection mode for the first time. Simulation results for n = 1, 2, and 3 are presented here to demonstrate the concept of a distributed reflective LPG design. It is expected that such a sensor will open a new window for distributed sensing using reflective LPGs.

In this paper, a high sensitivity, polarization preserving photonic crystal fiber (PCF), based on circular air holes for sensing in the terahertz (THz) band, is presented. The finite element method, a practical and precise computational technique for describing the interactions between light and matter, is used to compute the modal properties of the designed fiber. For the designed PCF, comprising of circular air holes in both the cladding and in the porous core, a relative sensitivity of 73.5% and a high birefringence of 0.013 are achieved at 1.6 THz. The all circular air-hole structure, owing to its simplicity and compatibility with the current fiber draw technique for PCF fabrication, can be realized practically. It is anticipated that the designed fiber can be employed in applications such as detection of biological samples and toxic chemicals, imaging, and spectroscopy.

A hybrid porous‐core microstructure optical fibre (MOF) is proposed and its guiding properties are characterised for efficient terahertz wave guiding. A numerical investigation using the finite element method showed that a hybrid‐core MOF consisted of a diamond‐shaped cell and the circular arrangement of air holes exhibited an extremely low‐bending loss of 5.24 × 10⁻¹³ cm⁻¹ for a bending radius of 1 cm and an operating frequency of 1.0 THz. The proposed fibre also showed a low effective material loss of 0.08 cm⁻¹ at an optimised core porosity of 52%. Moreover, single mode propagation, dispersion and fabrication feasibility of the proposed MOF are discussed. Due to the excellent guiding properties, this MOF can be potentially used in THz imaging, sensing and flexible communication applications.

In this paper, we numerically demonstrate a two-layer circular lattice photonic crystal fiber (PCF) biosensor based on the principle of surface plasmon resonance (SPR). The finite element method (FEM) with circular perfectly matched layer (PML) boundary condition is applied to evaluate the performance of the proposed sensor. A thin gold layer is deposited outside the PCF structure, which acts as the plasmonic material for this design. The sensing layer (analyte) is implemented in the outermost layer, which permits easy and more practical fabrication process compared to analyte is put inside the air holes. It is demonstrated that, at gold layer thickness of 40 nm, the proposed sensor shows maximum sensitivity of 2200 nm/RIU using the wavelength interrogation method in the sensing range between 1.33–1.36. Besides, using an amplitude interrogation method, a maximum sensitivity of 266 RIU−1 and a maximum sensor resolution of 3.75 × 10−5 RIU are obtained. We also discuss how phase matching points are varied with different fiber parameters. Owing to high sensitivity and simple design, the proposed sensor may find important applications in biochemical and biological analyte detection.

In this paper, we investigate the effects for rotating the triangular core air hole arrangements of a hybrid design porous core fiber. The triangular core has been rotated in anti-clockwise direction to evaluate the impact on different waveguide properties. Effective Material Loss (EML), confinement loss, bending loss, dispersion characteristics and fraction of power flow are calculated to determine the impacts for rotating the triangular core. The porous fiber represented here has a hybrid design in the core area which includes circular rings with central triangular air hole arrangement. The cladding of the investigated fiber has a hexagonal array of air hole distribution. For optimum parameters the reported hybrid porous core fiber shows a flat EML of ±0.000416 cm⁻¹ from 1.5 to 5 terahertz (THz) range and a near zero dispersion of 0.4±0.042 ps/THz/cm from 1.25 to 5.0 THz. Negligible confinement and bending losses are reported for this new type of hybrid porous core design. With improved concept of air hole distribution and exceptional waveguide properties, the reported porous core fiber can be considered as a vital forwarding step in this field of research.

Objective - This paper presents an overview of Construction Project Manager's (CPM) responsibility in Malaysia. The construction sector plays a vital role in Malaysian economy and a very significant part of its' sustainable development. CPM is a professional who monitors all works in the construction project from top to bottom. The role of CPM is very important to identify their range of top responsibilities which might have different levels of priorities depending on the type of project. Methodology/Technique - There are several of them identified from the literature. The objective of this study was to identify which responsibilities were among the top ones, and to find out whether they have any kind of inter-relationship between them. The Experts were chosen for interview and questionnaire survey. A comparative analysis was performed by using Expert Choice, which gave the rankings. Findings - A qualitative judgment showed that there were indeed some responsibilities which can play significant role. However, it was tough to single them out in a clear ranking, nor was it seemed primarily necessary. Rather, a group of responsibilities appeared to describe the phenomenon more clearly. Novelty - The study also showed how some of these responsibilities seemed to be closely interlinked and why they actually need to be together cohesively. Type of Paper: Review Keywords : Construction Project Manager, Project Management, Professional Responsibility, Malaysia