Pulse Wave Analysis Based on Fiber Bragg Gratings

Photoplethysmography (PPG) is the most commonly used technique for pulse wave (PW) analysis, widely employed in cardiovascular risk assessment. However, its performance can be affected by external factors such as ambient light, skin tone, temperature, and sensor placement. To overcome some of these limitations, we propose a sensor based on fiber Bragg gratings (FBGs) embedded in a soft silicone patch, designed to enhance mechanical sensitivity, improve robustness, and enable flexible, potentially wearable applications. The FBG sensor was evaluated against a commercial PPG module (MAX30102) through simultaneous acquisition on healthy volunteers at rest, with signal analysis conducted in MATLAB environment. Electrocardiographic (ECG) signal was recorded concurrently to provide a temporal reference. Results showed high similarity between FBG and PPG waveforms, confirming the feasibility of the FBG-based system for PW monitoring. Additionally, to assess the sensor ability to capture age-related vascular features, signals from two healthy volunteers of different ages were compared. Differences observed in the recorded signals highlight the potential of the FBG-based sensor for noninvasive cardiovascular aging assessment.