Multigas Sensing Technique Based on Quartz Crystal Tuning Fork-Enhanced Laser Spectroscopy

Abstract

A compact multigas sensor system based on a single quartz crystal tuning fork (QCTF) and multifrequency synchronous modulation strategy is proposed for trace gas detection. To demonstrate the novel detection technique, three near-infrared continuous-wave (CW) distributed feedback (DFB) diode lasers with center wavelengths of near 1391, 1574, and 1653 nm and a standard 32 kHz QCTF were integrated for simultaneous detection of H₂O, CO₂, and CH₄, respectively. Wavelength modulation spectroscopy with second harmonic detection (WMS-2<i>f</i>) was selected for enhancing sensitivity. Design of the sensor configuration and primary performance between the traditional single-frequency modulation and the proposed tri-frequency modulation were experimentally investigated and compared in detail. The results indicate that the proposed sensing technique has significant advantages of cost effectiveness, portability, and ease-of-use, and detection limits of 1.4, 353, and 3.1 ppm for simultaneously measuring H₂O, CO₂, and CH₄, respectively, are obtained, corresponding to the normalized noise equivalent absorption (NNEA) coefficients of 2.65 × 10^-10, 8.09 × 10^-10, and 8.28 × 10^-10 cm^-1 W/√Hz, respectively. Moreover, the use of an erbium-doped fiber amplifier (EDFA) has been demonstrated as an effective method for sensitivity enhancement.