Determination of the optimal wavelength for temperature independent detection of commercial gasoline with a polymer cladding optical fiber

An influence of temperature variations on transmission of a polymer cladding silica core (PCS) optical fiber was investigated in a wide spectral range covering the first (1710 nm) and the second (1170 nm) vibrational overtone bands of gasoline absorption. Thermo-induced changes of the fiber background transmittance have strong dependence on wavelength. A narrow wavelength band around 1214 nm was found to be almost free from the thermal effects while maintaining sufficient sensitivity for gasoline detection.