Pressure compensated fiber laser hydrophone: modeling and experimentation.

A pressure compensated metal diaphragm based fiber laser hydrophone configuration that can provide good sensitivity, large bandwidth, and sea state zero noise floor is proposed in this paper. A simplified theoretical model of the proposed sensor configuration is developed in which the acoustic elements of the sensor configuration are modeled using a four-pole acoustic transfer matrix and the structural elements are modeled as second order single degree of freedom elements. This model is then used to optimize the design parameters of the sensor system to achieve the performance objectives. An axisymmetric finite element analysis of the sensor configuration is also carried out to validate the results from the simplified theoretical model. Prototype sensors were fabricated and hydrostatic testing in a pressure vessel validated the static pressure compensation performance of the sensor. Frequency dependent sensitivity of the sensor system was measured through acoustic testing in a water tank. The prototype sensor gave a flat frequency response up to 5 kHz and experimental results compared well with theoretical predictions. The sensor has an acceleration rejection figure on the order of 0 dB ref 1 m/s(2) Pa and the pressure compensation approach worked reasonably well up to a hydrostatic pressures equivalent to a depth of 50 m.

Ambient noise imaging in warm shallow waters; robust statistical algorithms and range estimation.

The high frequency ambient noise in warm shallow waters is dominated by snapping shrimp. The loud snapping noises they produce are impulsive and broadband. As the noise propagates through the water, it interacts with the seabed, sea surface, and submerged objects. An array of acoustic pressure sensors can produce images of the submerged objects using this noise as the source of acoustic "illumination." This concept is called ambient noise imaging (ANI) and was demonstrated using ADONIS, an ANI camera developed at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. To overcome some of the limitations of ADONIS, a second generation ANI camera (ROMANIS) was developed at the National University of Singapore. The acoustic time series recordings made by ROMANIS during field experiments in Singapore show that the ambient noise is well modeled by a symmetric α-stable (SαS) distribution. As high-order moments of SαS distributions generally do not converge, ANI algorithms based on low-order moments and fractiles are developed and demonstrated. By localizing nearby snaps and identifying the echoes from an object, the range to the object can be passively estimated. This technique is also demonstrated using the data collected with ROMANIS.