Fibre optic devices produced by arc discharges

We present an overview of the applications of the electric arc technique related to optical fibre technology. The use of arc discharges ranges from the well-known fibre splicing, going through the fabrication of basic devices such as fibre tapers and microspheres, to tailoring the spectra of UV-induced gratings such as in the apodization of fibre Bragg gratings and also in the fabrication of phase-shifted and sampled fibre Bragg gratings. However, in the past decade a topic more intensively investigated was probably long-period fibre gratings. Therefore, some devices based on arc-induced gratings, namely, phase-shifted and step-changed gratings and bandpass filters are discussed. We also present an electrically insulated thermocouple assembled in situ using arc discharges. This sensor is very useful in the determination of the temperature attained by the fibre during an arc discharge, this property being fundamental for the discussion of the mechanisms of formation and for the understanding of the thermal properties of arc-induced devices. (review article)