Abstract
A high sensitivity refractive index sensor based on the combination of mechanically induced long period gratings (LPG) and fiber tapers was developed for real-time fuel quality analysis. The sensor was built in a Mach-Zehnder configuration by employing a pair of in-series gratings. In order to enhance sensor sensitivity, the region between both LPGs was tapered down from 125 to 10 mu m. The system was tested by measuring water concentration in ethanol and ethanol concentration in commercial gasoline. The tapered sensor has shown an average sensitivity of 930 nm/RIU, 18 times higher than the non-tapered version. The resolution limit of the system using spectral interrogation was estimated to be 0.06% of ethanol dissolved in gasoline. For the purpose of real-time monitoring, an interrogation system based on white light interferometry (WLI) and virtual instrumentation was employed to evaluate ethanol evaporation in water, avoiding the use of spectral analysis. The WLI system, using phase tracking techniques, enabled us to record the evolution of the ethanol concentration in water with a resolution of 0.005% (v/v).

Abstract
This work describes an all-fiber Fabry-Perot interferometer (FFPI) that is sensitive to gas pressure variations. The geometry of the air cavity consists on splicing a small section of silica rod with a large offset in between two singlemode fibers. It is shown that the FFPI sensor is sensitive to gas pressure variation and when submitted to different gaseous environments, namely carbon dioxide, nitrogen and oxygen, it presented different sensitivities of 6.2, 4.1 and 3.6 nm/MPa, respectively. This result is obtained due to refractive index difference between gases. The refractive index change on nitrogen environment by means of the gas pressure variation resulted in a sensitivity of 1526 nm/RIU. The response of the sensing device to temperature in air was also determined and a sensitivity of -14 pm/degrees C was attained.

Abstract
In this work, we present a method to predict the behaviour of a remote optical fiber sensor system based on a long period grating, Raman amplification and electrical interrogation were investigated. The interrogation unit is composed by two fiber Bragg gratings modulated by two piezoelectrics transductors. Optical fiber sensor systems are typically limited to operate at distances of only few kilometers due to the attenuation effects and noise that adversely affects the performance of the sensor interrogation process. We present experimental and simulation results obtained in the context of analysis of remote optical fiber sensors. The simulation models use numerical methods to compute the Raman interaction between the pumps and the sensor signals and allow speeding up the analyses regarding the setup to be experimentally implemented to measure environmental temperature. The results obtained show that under Raman amplification the power ratio between the two central wavelengths of the FBGs has a linear relation with the change of the LPG resonance induced by temperature variation.

Abstract
A torsion active sensor based on a figure-of-eight configuration is presented. The interferometric fiber loop mirror, composed by a section of photonic crystal fiber, also acts as a sensing element. When torsion is applied over a range of 180 degrees, a sensitivity of 7.13 pm/degree is achieved. Besides, this configuration can also be used to measure optical power variations and it presents low sensitivity to temperature.

Abstract
In this work a fiber optic interferometric system for differential refractive index measurement is described. The system is based on a white light Mach-Zehnder configuration, with serrodyne phase modulation, used to interrogate two similar non-adiabatic tapered optical fiber sensors in a differential scheme. In this situation the system is able to measure the refractive index independent of temperature. Signal processing with low cost digital instrumentation developed in Labview environment allows a detectable change in refractive index of Delta n approximate to 1.46 x 10(-6), which is, from the best of our knowledge the highest resolution achieved using a bare fiber taper device for a range of refractive index close to the water index. The results demonstrate the potential of the proposed scheme to operate as a self-referenced chemical and biological sensing platform.

Abstract
This paper discusses the calculation of the trapping forces in optical tweezers using a combination of the finite differences time domain (FDTD) method and the Lorentz force on electric dipoles. The results of 2D simulations of the trapping of a circular particle by a waveguide with a circular tip are presented and discussed. © 2012 The Author(s).