Resolving the range ambiguity in OFDR using digital signal processing

A digitally range-gated variant of optical frequency domain reflectometry is demonstrated which overcomes the beat note ambiguity when sensing beyond a single frequency sweep. The range-gating is achieved using a spread spectrum technique involving time-stamping of the optical signal using high-frequency pseudorandom phase modulation. The reflections from different sections of fiber can then be isolated in the time domain by digitally inverting the phase modulation using appropriately-delayed copies of the pseudorandom noise code. Since the technique overcomes the range ambiguity in OFDR, it permits high sweep repetition rates without sacrificing range, thus allowing for high-bandwidth sensing over long lengths of fiber. This is demonstrated for the case of quasi-distributed sensing.