A staple of the oil industry, distributed temperature sensing (DTS)—capable of measuring temperature along a length of fiber-optic cable—is finding utility in environmental monitoring, helping researchers to tease out the hydrology of streams, air flow in valleys, and health of glaciers.

This article presents the proof-of-principle of a new sensor capable of detecting the position of the interface between two fluids.

Selecting a pressure switch that is well suited for a particular application is a multi-faceted process. The trick is to know what questions to ask to optimize your application.

Single photons are elementary particles that are arguably the most tangible, yet some of the most difficult to detect and characterize as single entities. Techniques to count single photons require optical detectors with linear operation, high gain, wide bandwidth and low noise. This article will describe a variety of approaches to detect and count single photons, the key measurement metrics, and potential applications of single photon sensors.

A Canadian bridge uses a novel technique to keep its roadbed clear of black ice. Designers testing the concept chose an Internet-enabled DA system to allow them to track the multiple temperatures and strains involved.

Ethernet powers our home and office networks and it is increasingly being used to automate control processes on the plant floor. Here's why.

Continuous-wave cavity ring-down spectroscopy uses the behavior of laser light passed through a gas sample to provide fast and accurate measurements of contaminants down to parts per trillion (ppt) levels.

The next generation of networks will move beyond disconnected device-specific networks and systems and toward a distributed infrastructure, with intelligent functions residing across the entire network, from its edge to its core.

By using an indirect current-feedback topology, instrumentation amplifiers can avoid some of the pitfalls inherent in using three op amp instrumentation amplifiers powered from single supply voltages.

The proportion of industry sales varies widely among sensing technologies, with proximity sensors taking the largest market share. While the smallest share belongs to linear displacement devices, this category is forecast to experience the highest growth.