A passive optical fibre sensor based on Fabry-Perot interferometry for bipolar electrostatic monitoring of insulating dielectrics

The measurement of the surface charge on the insulating dielectrics is critical to estimate the insulation strength of electrical equipment in operation. Unavoidable interactions with the electromagnetic field, however, generally result in distortion measurement of active sensor. Thus, it is of great significance to investigate a passive sensor for monitoring the deposited charge. Here, a passive optical fibre electrostatic sensor is developed on the principle of Fabry-Perot interference to quantify the surface potential of the insulating dielectrics. The sensitivity of quantifying the electrostatic charge is explored in terms of the wavelength shift in the interference spectrum, and the linear correlation is 0.99. Meanwhile, the sensor can identify a negative quadratic trend with the increase of the surface roughness of the insulating dielectrics. The merits of the proposed sensor such as passive monitoring, bipolar electrostatic detection, and the excellent ability of anti-electromagnetic interference are highlighted in the results. Hence, this sensor can serve as an effective tool to monitor the electrostatic charge in the fields of smart electrical equipment, fuel transportation, aerospace, integrate circuit etc.