Photonics West 2026 – Invited Talk by Antonio Mecozzi (University of L’Aquila)
At Photonics West 2026, Antonio Mecozzi (University of L’Aquila) presented an invited talk titled “Harnessing Mediterranean Seawater as an Earth-Scale Geophysical Sensor”
The presentation highlighted recent advances in leveraging optical fibre communication systems as large-scale sensing platforms for environmental and geophysical monitoring. In particular, the talk showcased how coherent detection techniques, widely used in modern telecom networks, can be repurposed to extract valuable physical information from signals already propagating through deployed fibre infrastructure.
Building on recent ECSTATIC project results, the work explored the use of polarisation-based measurements and signal analysis methods to detect and characterise geophysical events. This includes the monitoring of seismic activity through long-distance optical links, with recent studies demonstrating the ability to observe signatures associated with earthquake dynamics and related phenomena.
A key theme of the talk was the potential to transform existing telecom networks into dual-use systems that simultaneously enable high-capacity data transmission and continuous environmental sensing, without requiring dedicated sensing fibres. This approach opens new opportunities for scalable, cost-effective monitoring of critical infrastructure and natural hazards at regional and global scales.
The slides from the presentation are available via the ‘Click to view the presentation’ button below.
