Optical fibre laser velocimetry: a review

The applications of optical fibre technology to laser velocimetry are diverse and often critical to their successful implementation, particularly in harsh environments. Applications range from the use of optical fibres for beam delivery and scattered light collection, aiding the miniaturization of instrument probes, to the use of imaging fibre bundles for imaging the flow field in planar velocimetry systems. Optical fibre techniques have also been used in signal processing, for example fibre frequency shifters, and optical fibre devices such as amplifiers and lasers have been exploited. This paper will review the use of optical fibres in point-wise laser velocimetry techniques such as laser Doppler velocimetry and laser transit anemometry, as well as in planar measurement techniques such as particle imaging velocimetry and planar Doppler velocimetry. (topical review)