High-resolution single-mode fiber-optic distributed Raman sensor for absolute temperature measurement using superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors

We demonstrate a distributed fiber Raman sensor for absolute temperature measurement with spatial resolution on the order of 1 cm at 1550 nm wavelength in a single-mode fiber using superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors. Rapid measurements are shown, with less than 60 s integration period, allowing the demonstration of temperature evolution in an optical fiber recorded at over 100 resolvable, 1.2 cm spaced positions along the fiber simultaneously. This distributed sensor has potential application as a primary reference standard, in which high-accuracy, high-spatial-resolution temperature measurements can be obtained without the need for a separate temperature calibration standard. (C) 2011 American Institute of Physics.