Fiber Optic Sensing Association Brings Renowned Innovators Together

The event, themed “Fiber Optic Sensing Development, Commerce and the Greater Good” brings technology and industry leaders together for a visionary exchange including technology presentations, networking plus fiber optic sensing-focused laboratory and field tours in and around Graz, Austria, a UNESCO World Heritage site.

“We’re excited to welcome globally recognized scientists, leading technology developers in fiber optic sensing, and our valued FOSA members to the historic city of Graz, Austria,” said FOSA member and meeting host Dr. Werner Lienhart.

Confirmed speakers at the event include:

• Dr. Andreas Fichtner, ETH Zurich
• Dr. Werner Lienhart, IGMS, TU Graz
• Dr. Ali Masoudi, University of Southampton
• Dr. Chris Minto, Indeximate
• Dr. Luc Thévenaz, EPFL
• Dr. Andreas Wuestefeld, NORSAR

Dr. Andreas Fichtner is a Full Professor for Seismology and Wave Physics at ETH Zurich. He received his PhD from the University of Munich on Full Seismic Waveform Inversion for Structural and Source Parameters. Andreas’ research foci are seismic tomography and fiber optic sensing. He and his team deploy fiber optic cables in densely populated cities, and on volcanoes and glaciers to provide information about Earth structure and seismicity with unprecedented resolution.

Dr. Werner Lienhart studied surveying in UK and Austria and is full professor at Graz University of Technology, Austria. Prior to his university position, he was product manager at Leica Geosystems in Switzerland. Werner has more than 20 years of experience in fiber optic sensing, has published more than 150 scientific articles and is currently president of the Society for Civil Structural Health Monitoring (SCSHM).

Dr. Ali Masoudi, University of Southampton, is a principal research fellow at the Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC), University of Southampton, with expertise in distributed optical fiber sensing systems. Ali’s current research focus is on high-resolution DAS systems. This system uses a specialty fiber with point reflectors inscribed in the core to map vibrations with 10 cm resolution at thousands of points with a sampling rate as high as 1 MS/sec per sensing channel. The high spatial and sampling resolution of HR-DAS allows the system to map highly dynamic events such as the pressure distribution of shock waves and wave propagation in solids.

Dr. Chris Minto, well known in the fiber optic sensing industry for his thought leadership, has an extensive publication and patent track record. In 2022, he co-founded Indeximate with a mission to fully exploit the potential of sensing systems by tackling the critical problem of failure in subsea power cables. Chris has a degree and PhD in Physics, and a 25-year working career with focus on product development and business management within the domain of acoustics.

Dr. Luc Thévenaz received his M.Sc. degree and Ph.D. in physics from the University of Geneva, Switzerland. In 1988 he joined the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology of Lausanne (EPFL) where he is now Emeritus Professor and has led a research group active in photonics. Research topics include fiber sensors, slow & fast light, nonlinear fiber optics and laser spectroscopy in gases. His expertise covers all applications of stimulated Brillouin scattering in optical fibers. Luc is known for innovative concepts related to pushing distributed fiber sensing beyond technical barriers. Dr. Thévenaz is a Fellow of the IEEE and Optica (OSA), and Member of the Swiss Academy of Engineering Sciences.

Dr. Andreas Wuestefeld is Senior Research Geophysicist and Technology Lead in Fiber Optics with NORSAR. NORSAR is an internationally recognized independent research foundation specializing in seismology and seismic monitoring. NORSOR’s NORFOX evaluates the possibilities of next-generation seismic arrays with fiber-optic Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS). Additionally, fundamental research on fiber technology, including DAS and DTSS (Distributed Temperature and Strain Sensing) can be evaluated. The site is co-located with the NORES 16-element seismometer array, a well-established benchmark tool used for calibration of the DAS signals.

“FOSA meets in person each June. This year we’ll meet for a tremendous exchange around fiber optic sensing in an equally fantastic setting, replete with networking, world class subject matter experts, laboratory and field tours. Thanks to our host Dr. Werner Lienhart and TU Graz,” added Dr. Paul Dickinson, Chairman of FOSA.

ABOUT THE FIBER OPTIC SENSING ASSOCIATION. FOSA is a non-profit organization created in Washington, DC in 2017 with the mission of educating industry, government, and the public on the benefits of fiber optic sensing. FOSA is affiliated with the FIBER BROADBAND ASSOCIATION (FBA). Through webinars, videos, white papers, public presentations, and public policy advocacy, FOSA provides information on the use of fiber optic sensing to secure critical facilities, enhance public safety, and protect the environment.

FOSA Members include ACI Monitoring, AP Sensing, Berkeley (University of California), Corning, CRALEY Group, Ditch Witch, Dura-Line Corporation, Eastplace Consultants, Exail, FBGS, FEBUS Optics, Go!Foton, Graz University of Technology, Hifi, Luna Innovations (LIOS, OptaSense, Silixa), LWF Group Limited (Craley), NEC Corporation of America, Network Integrity Systems, Nodeology, OFS, Optical Strategies LLC, OZ Optics, PROP Systems, Prysmian (Omnisens), SAMM Teknoloji, Sensonic, Smartpipe Technologies, Underline, and VIAVI Solutions.