Abstract
We have investigated the polarization properties of long-period fibre gratings fabricated using the electric arc technique. It was found that the choice of the fabrication parameters (electric current, arc duration and pulling tension) affects the polarization dependent loss of the produced gratings. In particular, a non-monotonic dependence on the external pulling tension was obtained.

Abstract
The underlying formation mechanisms and the properties of long-period gratings produced through arc discharges are intrinsically related to the temperature reached by the fibre during arc exposure. In this work, the determination of the fibre temperature was based on Plank's blackbody radiation law. The radiation emitted by the optical fibre during heating due to an electric arc discharge, detected using a Cronin spectrometer, was fitted to the emission spectrum of the blackbody radiation, allowing the estimation of the temperature range attained by the fibre. A peak temperature of 1400 +/- 50 degrees C was obtained.

Abstract
We have investigated the sensitivity of arc-induced long-period gratings to changes of ambient refractive index. Two pure-silica-core fibres with different cladding diameters and a standard fibre were used in this study. For a 6 x 10(-3) change of the refractive index, a 240 pm shift of the resonant wavelength was achieved with long-period gratings written in the 125 mu m cladding diameter pure-silica-core fibre.

Abstract
A compact sensor able to discriminate between temperature and strain related effects was implemented. The proposed sensing head comprises a single long-period grating with two sections written consecutively in the SMF-28 fiber, by the electric arc discharge technique, using different fabrication parameters. The sensor performance is based on the distinct temperature and strain sensitivity values presented by two neighbor resonances belonging to each grating section. The temperature and strain resolutions are +/- 0.1 degrees C and +/- 40 mu epsilon, respectively.

Abstract
A new sensing configuration is proposed for simultaneous measurement of strain and temperature that relies on a single long period grating written by the electric arc technique. The underlying principle is the azimuthal asymmetry induced by the electric arc fabrication technique, which results in a device with polarization dependent insertion loss sensitive to both temperature and strain. With the proposed configuration, resolutions of +/- 2.8 degreesC/rootHz and +/- 13.9 muepsilon/rootHz are obtained for temperature and strain measurements, respectively.

Abstract
The radiation emitted by an optical fiber during heating due to an electric arc discharge was detected using a Cronin spectrometer. The fitting of the emission spectrum to the blackbody radiation, allowed the estimation of the temperature range attained by the fiber.