Development of a multiwavelength Raman fiber laser based on phase-shifted fiber Bragg gratings for long-distance remote-sensing applications.

We propose a simple and flexible multiwavelength Raman fiber laser based on phase-shifted fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) and a tunable chirped FBG. Using a simple multiwavelength Raman laser configuration with a single phase-shifted FBG and a tunable chirped FBG, we readily achieved simultaneous two-channel sensing probes with a high extinction ratio of more than 50 dB over a 50-km distance. The multiwavelength output was stable and the peak fluctuation was less than 0.5 dB. The temperature and strain sensitivities are estimated to be 10.1 pm/degrees C and 7.5 pm/microstrain, respectively.