Abstract
A novel fiber optic curvature sensor based on a core-offset single-mode fiber (SMF) and on a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) is presented. The FBG cladding modes are efficiently excited by the large core misalignment. The curvature of the beam can be obtained by the reflected power of the core mode and the recoupled cladding mode.

Abstract
In this work, a polymeric sensitive layer based on the acid-base equilibrium of phenol and of its derivative p-nitro-phenol is presented for carbon dioxide measurements. Thin films casted on glass slides were tested, using a LED source (lambda c at 410 nm) and an Ocean Optics USB4000 spectrometer, in the 0% to 15.25% CO2 concentrations range, showing a 40% maximum transmittance variation with a 51s response time and a 0.15% resolution. Preliminary results indicate that CO2 also induces refractive index changes in the sensitive layer. Using a fiber based interferometric setup, a CO2 dependent refractive index change of similar to 0.045 RIU was observed, in the 0%-90% CO2 concentration range.

Abstract
An optical fibre sensor for determination of acetic acid is presented. The sensing probe is based on a fibre Bragg grating (FBG) Fabry-Perot cavity, coated with a thin film of sol-gel-PVP (polyvinylpyrrolidone) composite material. The polymeric thin film renders the interferometric output sensitive to the presence of carboxylic acid species. Results show that the wavelength of the interferometric peaks changes with acetic acid concentration, enabling its quantification. Coupling the fibre probe with a serrodyne modulated readout interferometer enables pseudo-heterodyne interrogation and the detection of acetic acid with a sensitivity of 92.6 deg/% L/L and a resolution of 0.2% L/L. The results demonstrate the potential of the proposed scheme to operate as a sensitive chemical sensor platform.

Abstract
A fiber-optic curvature sensor based on a core offset single-mode fiber (SMF) combined with a fiber Bragg grating (FBG) is presented. The FBG cladding modes are efficiently excited by the large core misalignment. The curvature of the fiber can be obtained by the ratio between the recoupled cladding mode power and the reflected core mode power. These measurements are independent from temperature variation.

Abstract
In this work a self-referencing fiber optic intensity sensor using virtual instrumentation is presented. To ensure higher flexibility and dynamic optimization, the use of an optical fiber delay line or an electrical delay line is avoided by implementing a delay line in the virtual domain, preserving the self-referencing and sensitivity characteristics of the proposed optical intensity sensing structure. Results are presented where displacement is measured with an 18 mu m resolution demonstrating the concept feasibility.

Abstract
A system to interrogate optical fiber interferometric sensors with digital control is presented. The system is based on a receiving white light Mach-Zehnder interferometer and is capable of operating with four distinct synthetic and pseudo-heterodyne signal detection schemes. A differential phase detection scheme was implemented and system performance with the different processing schemes was compared using fiber Bragg grating based Fabry-Perot cavity strain sensors. With a lock-in time constant of 1 s, most digital techniques were able to nearly match the performance of a standard hardware system, demonstrating the feasibility of low-cost high-resolution interferometric systems operated with virtual instrumentation.