Developments in fiber optic sensor design

A wide range of indirect phase sensors which permit sensing of most common industrial physical measurands has been developed. Porous glass fiber research efforts show the potential for developing fibers capable of making photometric, spectrometric, and perhaps chromatographic measurements on gaseous and liquid substances. Infrared-fiber development has allowed the emergence of a variety of infrared sensors. These sensors have the potential capability of performing remote, localized FTIR (Fourier transform infrared) measurements, thus substantially expanding capabilities to qualitatively identify organic and inorganic compounds in remote-sensing environments. Bragg grating and double-core fiber sensors are discussed in terms of their ability to provide active optical effects and increase the sensitivity of certain measurements