Measurement error of surface-mounted fiber Bragg grating temperature sensor

Fiber Bragg grating (FBG) sensors are extensively used to measure surface temperatures. However, the temperature gradient effect of a surface-mounted FBG sensor is often overlooked. A surface-type temperature standard setup was prepared in this study to investigate the measurement errors of FBG temperature sensors. Experimental results show that the measurement error of a bare fiber sensor has an obvious linear relationship with surface temperature, with the largest error achieved at 8.1°C. Sensors packaged with heat conduction grease generate smaller measurement errors than do bare FBG sensors and commercial thermal resistors. Thus, high-quality packaged methods and proper modes of fixation can effectively improve the accuracy of FBG sensors in measuring surface temperatures.