ZrO/sub 2/ thin films deposited by the electrostatic self-assembly method on optical fibers for ammonia detection

A new type of optical fiber sensor for the detection of ammonia is proposed based on the electrostatic self-assembly method for the formation of ZrO/sub 2//polymer thin films on standard optical fibers. These sensors can work at room temperature, with a recovery time of less than 4 seconds. To our knowledge this is the first time that ZrO/sub 2/ has been deposited on optical fibers using such a deposition method.