Brief Overview of 

Optical Current and Voltage 
Sensors 
in the Electric Power Industry

Farnoosh Rahmatian
NuGrid Power Corp
NASPI Distribution Task Team – June 1, 2017

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 1

Modern Grid Measurement Needs
• Voltage and current sensors are the eyes and ears of the 
electric power system
• A smarter grid can benefit from seeing and hearing better
• Measurement needs
• Safer
• More accurate
• More reliable
• Wider dynamic range
• Wider bandwidth
• High speed communication
• Ease of use
• Accurate timing

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 2

Optical Voltage and Current Sensor Systems
Secondary Devices
Optical Transformers (e.g., meters and relays)

Optical and/or
Electrical Cables

Sensor
Electronics and
Merging Unit

Cabling System
Optional Cable
Management Box

Optical and/or
Electrical Cables

Schematic of a typical optical sensor system

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 3

Potential Benefits of Advanced Optical Sensors
• Performance Features
• Accuracy over a very wide dynamic range
• Exceptional phase accuracy (e.g., synchrophasor 
applications)
• Bandwidth, DC and harmonic
• Seismic performance
• User‐adjustable sensitivity
35kV 
• Safety & Environmental Concerns Optical 
VT
• Avoiding insulating oil or SF6 (depending on 
design)
• No open secondaries
• No ferro‐resonance
• Galvanic isolation from HV line

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 4

Potential Benefits of Advanced Optical Sensors
• Installation features
• Small size and weight
• Multi‐function, e.g., 
• metering & protection in one device 
• Voltage & current in one device

• Self monitoring

• Simple, linear, and scalable
• Simplifies substation/feeder design by 
allowing a simple template design for 
multiple applications
x kV Optical CT
• Digital communications

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 5

Optical Instrument Transformers –
Technology Overview
• Faraday and Pockels effects
• Product R&D in 1960s and 1970s
• Field prototypes/products in 1980’s and early 1990’s
• Cost‐effective and high‐MTBF optical/electronic 
components availability in the 1990’s 
− Thanks to the telecom boom/evolution.
• Commercial products available since late 1990’s

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 6

Current Sensors Technology Overview
Current 
Measurement

Electrical  
Optical 
Measuring 
Sensors
Devices

Iron  Air  Resistive  Hall 

Bulk Optic Fiber Optic
Core Core Shunt Effect

“Hybrid” Optical Sensors Any number of 
Signal sensing with electrical  Limited number 
turns
technology of turns
No size limits
Signal transmitted digitally over  Physical size 
Interferometric
fiber optics limitations
design
Optical isolation from HV

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 7

Industrial Optical Current Sensors

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 8

Voltage Sensors Technology Overview
Voltage Measurement

Electrical  
Optical 
Measuring 
Sensors
Devices

Bulk Optic
Iron‐core  Distributed 
Capacitive  Single sensing 
wound  Capacitive  Resistive Sensor
Voltage Txfr element with 
voltage Txfr Divider Divider Multiple sensing  
(CCVT) voltage applied 
(PT) elements
across full crystal
Nitrogen gas 
Uses SF6 gas for 
filled
insulation

“Hybrid” Optical Sensors
Signal sensing with electrical technology
Signal transmitted digitally over fiber optics
Optical isolation within substation yard

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 9

 Industrial Optical Voltage Sensors

230 kV class
Combined OVT/OCT

35kV 
OVT

138 kV class 500 kV class 500 kV class

Combined OVT/OCT mobile OVT Combined OVT/OCT
(Mobile)

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 10

Challenges
• Newer technology / products
• User familiarity / comfort
• Standards and Guides
• Regulatory approval and certification
• Maintenance and deployment practices
•…

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 11

Standards and Guides
• IEEE/ANSI C57.13
• IEEE C37.92 (low energy analog interface)
• IEEE 1601‐2010 (Optical CT VT) 
• Accuracy terminology, e.g., 0.3DR0.5‐150 (RF=1.5)
• IEC 60044 series (‐7/8 for non‐conventional VT/CT)
• And associated CSA series C60044‐7/8
• IEC 61869 series (new standards – not all published yet)
• IEC 61869‐6:2016
• IEC 61869‐9:2016
• IEC 61850‐9‐2 (digital interface)
• UCA Guide – 61850‐9‐2 light
• IEC 61869‐9 with IEEE 1588 profile for Merging Units (MU)
• IEEE Std. PC 37.241 (IEEE PES PSRC WG I‐11)
• Application of optical sensor systems in Protection – in balloting.

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 12

Applications
• General metering & protection
• Synchrophasors
• Grid intertie metering
• Wind farms and Independent Power Producers 
• HCDC ‐ high current DC (e.g., aluminum smelters)
• Power cable protection (differential)
• UHV measurements
• HVDC (high voltage DC) and High voltage platforms (series Capacitors)
• FACTS, SVC, …
• Power quality applications and transient monitoring
• Synchronized switching (lines, capacitors, reactors, transformers, …)
• Cable Monitoring
• Portable Calibration
• Testing (for laboratory and field testing)
• E.g., field calibration of synchrophasor systems

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 13

Synchrophasors using Optical Digital Sensors
• Similarities of PMUs (Phasor Measurement Units) and 
MUs (Merging Units)
Digital Time‐Tagged measurements
Precision timing
• Excellent phase accuracy regardless of current/voltage 
level
• Linearity over wide dynamic range of current/voltage
• Integrated PMU in optical sensor electronics
Synchrophasors can be just another digital output format

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 14

Questions?

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 15

Supplementary Information

See the following slides for various examples of 
optical sensor applications / installations

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 16

Arizona –
230 kV British
Combined Columbia –
Voltage & 500 kV
Current Combined
Sensor Voltage &
Current
Sensor

DC CT 25 kA
Quebec

United
Kingdom
420 kV -
OCT

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 17

 SVC Substation Harmonics Measurement

1.4

1.2
Phase C
% of Fundamental Frequency

Phase B
1
Phase A

0.8

0.6

0.4

0.2
550 kV class testing
for harmonics
0 (Bandwidth 20 kHz)
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
Harmonic #
©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 18
High‐Frequency Measurements
Impulse and fast transient voltage and current measurements,
e.g., for reactive switching test (in laboratory and on site)
0.3

0.25
Sample Voltage
Measurement
Detector Output Voltage (V)

0.2

0.15 Waveform:
0.1 283 kV peak with
0.05 <100 ns rise-time
0

-0.05
-4.E-07 -2.E-07 0.E+00 2.E-07 4.E-07 6.E-07 8.E-07 1.E-06
Time (s)

0.4

0.3
Sample Current
Optical CT Output Voltage (V)

0.2
Measurement
0.1
Waveform:
0
26 kA peak at
-0.1
0.7 MHz
-0.2

-0.3

-0.4
-4.E-06 -2.E-06 0.E+00 2.E-06 4.E-06 6.E-06 8.E-06
Time (s)
©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 19
Series Capacitor Staged Fault Testing

Fiber Optic CT and VT were used because of

– Wide bandwidth (harmonics-rich signals)
– Wide dynamic range (10 to 12000 A were expected)
– Safety: passive optical isolation from high-voltage

• varying ground voltage

during the fault
– Immunity to electromagnetic
interference
• May be strong in the
presence of fault arc
– Ease of set up

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 20

OVT‐138kV for MOV Voltage OCT for MOV Current

• OVT-138kV, Bandwidth ~ 40 kHz, Ratio =

201,250:10
• OCT for MOV current, Bandwidth ~ 6 kHz, Ratio =
12,000 A : 10 V
• Window OCT for fault current, Bandwidth ~ 6 kHz
– Ratio 1 = 12,000 A : 10 V
– Ratio 2 = 750 A : 10 V
• Time delay ~ 43 s

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 21

OCT for Fault Current

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 22

Results – 5 Shots
NXVCT MOV Energy (MJ) NXCT MOV Current (kA)
NXCT Fault Current (kA) NXVT MOV Voltage (kV) NXVCT-2 MOV Energy (MJ)
15 250 15 250
NXCT-2 MOV Current (kA)
12 200 12 NXVT MOV Voltage (kV) 200

9 150 9 150

MOV Current and Energy

6 100 6 100
Current and Energy

MOV Voltage (kV)

MOV Voltage (kV)
3 50 3 50

0 0 0 0

-3 -50 -3 -50

-6 -100 -6 -100

-9 -150 -9 -150

-12 -200 -12 -200

-15 -250 -15 -250

-0.01 0.00 0.01 0.02 0.03 0.04 0.05 0.06 0.14 0.15 0.16 0.17 0.18 0.19 0.20 0.21
Time (s) Time (s)

0.6
Secondary Arc Current Summary Results
Units
0.4
Fault number 1 2 3 4 5
Primary arcing time ms 36 36 36 36 42
0.2
Secondary arcing time ms 425 863 606 290 276
Current (kA)

Number of voltage peaks clipped by MOV 1 3 3 2 5

0.0
MOV energy absorbed MJ 2.39 10.7 10.2 3.42 13.6
-0.2
MOV Voltage Peak (absolute value) kV 196 204 204 202 205
MOV Current Peak (absolute value) kA 6.4 12 12 12.8 13
-0.4
Approx. MOV Voltage ringing frequency Hz 610 610 620 620 620
Primary Fault Current Peak (absolute value) kA 11 11 11 11 11
-0.6 Approximate secondary fault current (peak-to-peak) A 120 160 120 160 160
0.00 0.05 0.10 0.15 0.20 0.25 0.30 0.35
Time (s)
©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 23
Shunt Capacitor Banks
Example: Capacitor Unbalance Protection
– Two outputs per optical CT
• Output 1 Ratio, 1A:1A (Max 2 A), connected to an over current relay
– Alarm level set at 0.8A (2+ can’s failing)
– Trip level set at 1.4A (4+ cans failing).
• Ratio 25A:0.2V (Max 1000 A), for fault monitoring (connected to a
recorder).
– Bandwidth 6 kHz

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 24

 Shunt Capacitor Banks

Showing Primary
Current of 0.5 A
Measured Signals (Arb. unit)

Unfiltered
Filtered

-0.01 0 0.01 0.02

Time (s)

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 25

OCT‐DC for HVDC/SVC/De‐Icer
69 kV class
Bandwidth: DC to 10 kHz
Distance between CT columns and
electronics = 1 km
Multiple output per CT
Electronics for 3 CTs in one
chassis

Quebec, Canada
©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 26
PS1/Q5 F. RAHMATIAN(Canada) & P. MAZZA (Italy) SC A3 Discussion Group Meeting  – 2016‐08‐25 Slide  1
©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 27
 Question: Is there a need for voltage transformers 
that are better suited to measure harmonics? 
Response: 
• At the distribution levels, we strongly believe 
there is an increasing need for harmonics 
measurements due to the addition of more 
distributed generation, microgrids, etc. and the 
associated inverters.
• At the transmission levels, with more HVDC
and FACTS deployment, as well as increasing 
interest in higher frequency measurements 
(e.g., TRV, switching phenomena, and lightning 
strikes), there seem to be growing need too.  
PS1/Q5 F. RAHMATIAN(Canada) & P. MAZZA (Italy) SC A3 Discussion Group Meeting  – 2016‐08‐25 Slide  2
©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 28
 Question: What technology is proposed? 
Optical VT/RCVT

C divider
Electronic VT

R divider

CVT

HV MV LV
Inductive VT
15 Hz

100 Hz

1 kHz

10 kHZ

100 kHz

1 MHz

10 MHz
50 Hz
DC

IEC 61869‐103:2012, Figure 9 – Voltage Transformer technologies’ 
frequency range according to present experience

PS1/Q5 F. RAHMATIAN(Canada) & P. MAZZA (Italy) SC A3 Discussion Group Meeting  – 2016‐08‐25 Slide  3

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 29
 Question: What technology is proposed? 
Response: 
• Have successfully used:
o Capacitive dividers
o RC dividers
o Optical VTs
o CVTs with a special tap/equipment to bypass the inductive 
transformer (very similar to a capacitive divider)
o Voltage transformers, mostly at distribution voltages for lower harmonics  
• Do not recommend to use CVTs and VTs without special provisions.
• With analog outputs, particularly from resistive and capacitive dividers, 
attention has to be paid to cabling as it may have impact on bandwidth 
if it is not properly accounted for.
• Digital output at 14.4 kHz sampling rate (for power quality) per IEC 
61869‐9 and the frequency mask as given in IEC 61869‐6 also impose 
limitations for higher harmonics measurements.

PS1/Q5 F. RAHMATIAN(Canada) & P. MAZZA (Italy) SC A3 Discussion Group Meeting  – 2016‐08‐25 Slide  4

©2017 NuGrid Power Corp 30