A distributed fiber optic sensor with the ability of detecting and locating intruders on foot and vehicles over long perimeters (>10 km) was studied. The response of the sensor to people walking over or near it and to vehicles driving nearby was observed and analyzed. The sensor works on the principle of phase sensitive optical time domain re ectometry, making use of interferometric effects of Rayleigh backscattered light along a single mode fiber. Light pulses from a highly stable Er:doped fiber laser emitting single longitudinal mode light and exhibiting low frequency drift are passed through one end of the buried fiber. The backscattered light emerging from the same fiber end was monitored using a photodetector. The phase changes produced in the light pulse due to the pressure of the intruder walking directly above or near the sensor or from the seismic disturbances created by vehicles moving in the vicinity of the sensor are detected using the phase sensitive Optical Time Domain Re ectometer (OTDR). Field tests were conducted with the sensing element as a single mode fiber in a 3-mm diameter cable buried at depths ranging from 8 to 18 inches in clay soil. It was observed that the sensor could detect intruders walking transverse to the cable line at a distance of 40 ft from it. A car moving at a speed of 30 mph on a rough road could be consistently detected up to a distance of 480 ft from the sensor, while a car driven on a smooth road 200 ft from the sensor could be detected only when passing through rough patches on the road. Tests were also performed with an intruder walking near the sensor while a car was driven at a speed of 30 mph on a rough road. The effect on the signal due to the intruder on foot could be distinguished clearly only when the car was at least 200 ft away from the sensor. The results in this thesis represent the first quantitative study of the sensitivity of the sensor under varied test conditions. It is expected that these findings will be helpful in the practical implementation of the long perimeter intrusion sensor along high security domains like national borders, military bases and government buildings.

A distributed sensor using an optical fiber for detecting and locating intruders over long perimeters (>10 km) is described. Phase changes resulting from either the pressure of the intruder on the ground immediately above the buried fiber or from seismic disturbances in the vicinity are sensed by a phase-sensitive optical time-domain reflectometer (φ−OTDR). Light pulses from a cw laser operating in a single longitudinal mode and with low (MHz/min range) frequency drift are injected into one end of the single mode fiber, and the backscattered light is monitored with a photodetector. In laboratory tests with 12 km of fiber on reels, the effects of localized phase perturbations induced by a piezoelectric fiber stretcher on φ−OTDR traces were characterized. In field tests in which the sensing element is a single mode fiber in a 3-mm diameter cable buried in an 8 to 18 inch deep, 4 inch wide trench in clay soil, detection of intruders on foot up to 15 ft from the cable line was achieved. In desert terrain field tests in which the sensing fiber is in a 4.5-mm diameter cable buried in a 1 ft deep, 2.5 ft wide trench filled with loose sand, high sensitivity and consistent detection of intruders on foot and of vehicles traveling down a road near the cable line was realized over a cable length of 8.5 km and a total fiber path of 19 km in real time. In a final series of field tests in clay soil, phase changes produced by the steps of a person walking up to 15 ft away from the buried cable were observed, and vehicles traveling at 10 mph were consistently detected up to 300 ft away. Based on these results, this technology may be regarded as a candidate for providing low-cost perimeter security for nuclear power plants, electrical power distribution centers, storage facilities for fuel and volatile chemicals, communication hubs, airports, government offices, military bases, embassies, and national borders.

A distributed sensor using an optical fiber for detecting and locating intruders over long perimeters (>10 km) is described. Phase changes resulting from either the pressure of the intruder on the ground immediately above the buried fiber or from seismic disturbances in the vicinity are sensed by a phase-sensitive optical time-domain reflectometer (φ−OTDR). Light pulses from a cw laser operating in a single longitudinal mode and with low (MHz/min range) frequency drift are injected into one end of the single mode fiber, and the backscattered light is monitored with a photodetector. In laboratory tests with 12 km of fiber on reels, the effects of localized phase perturbations induced by a piezoelectric fiber stretcher on φ−OTDR traces were characterized. In field tests in which the sensing element is a single mode fiber in a 3-mm diameter cable buried in an 8 to 18 inch deep, 4 inch wide trench in clay soil, detection of intruders on foot up to 15 ft from the cable line was achieved. In desert terrain field tests in which the sensing fiber is in a 4.5-mm diameter cable buried in a 1 ft deep, 2.5 ft wide trench filled with loose sand, high sensitivity and consistent detection of intruders on foot and of vehicles traveling down a road near the cable line was realized over a cable length of 8.5 km and a total fiber path of 19 km in real time. In a final series of field tests in clay soil, phase changes produced by the steps of a person walking up to 15 ft away from the buried cable were observed, and vehicles traveling at 10 mph were consistently detected up to 300 ft away. Based on these results, this technology may be regarded as a candidate for providing low-cost perimeter security for nuclear power plants, electrical power distribution centers, storage facilities for fuel and volatile chemicals, communication hubs, airports, government offices, military bases, embassies, and national borders.