Experimental Investigation of an Optical Resonator Gyroscope with a Mach–Zehnder Modulator and Its Sensitive Elements

Today, the task of developing microoptical gyroscopes is topical. Usually, tunable lasers with a built-in frequency stabilization system are used in such gyroscopes. They are comparatively bulky, which hinders the real miniaturization of optical gyroscopes. We propose a new approach implemented by u...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Yurii V. Filatov, Daniil G. Gilev, Polina S. Goncharova, Victor V. Krishtop, Alexander S. Kukaev, Konstantin A. Ovchinnikov, Alexander A. Sevryugin, Egor V. Shalymov, Vladimir Yu. Venediktov
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2022-12-01
Series:Photonics
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2304-6732/10/1/4
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Summary:Today, the task of developing microoptical gyroscopes is topical. Usually, tunable lasers with a built-in frequency stabilization system are used in such gyroscopes. They are comparatively bulky, which hinders the real miniaturization of optical gyroscopes. We propose a new approach implemented by using a Mach–Zehnder modulator with a passive ring resonator connected to one of its arms. This makes it possible to obtain a mutual configuration and makes the use of a tunable laser optional. Two ring resonators made of the polarization-maintaining fiber, suitable for use as sensitive elements of a gyroscope, were realized and investigated. Their Q-factor is equal to 14.5 × 10<sup>6</sup> and 28.9 × 10<sup>6</sup>. The maximum sensitivity of the proposed method when using the described resonators is 3.2 and 1.8 °/h, respectively. The first experimental setup of a resonator gyroscope implementing this approach has been manufactured and analyzed. When measuring the rotation speed by the quasi-harmonic signal span and its phase, the measurement accuracy was approximately 11 and 0.4 °/s, respectively.
ISSN:2304-6732