In 1978, Pierre Ferdinand received an MS degree in physics from the Université Pierre et Marie Curie (Paris 6), and in 1980 the Diplôme d’Etudes Approfondies in plasma physics, followed in 1982 by its PhD in physics from the University of Paris XI based in Orsay. In 1990 he received its State PhD (Doctorat d’Etat es Sciences) from the University of Nice, France. From 1980 to 1992, P. Ferdinand worked at the R&D Division of EDF. During this time, he mainly focused on optical-sensing topics such as stabilized optical sources and several OFSs, as the current sensor based on the Faraday effect in a Sagnac interferometer, and the Polarisation reflectometry (POTDR) for distributed sensing. From 1992 to 2015, as a Director of Research, he leads the Optical Measurement Lab. at CEA LIST (Atomic Energy Commission, Laboratory of Technologies and Systems Integration, France), where his researches include Fiber Bragg Gratings (FBG), and distributed sensing technologies, for industrial applications devoted to advanced Structure Health Monitoring (SHM). He recently joins a French SME involved in OFS for SHM, and remains scientific advisor for the CEA. Ferdinand holds 30 patents and is the author of a scientific book and several book chapters as co-editor, as well as about 200 research publications and communications on OFS and related subjects. He is a fellow of the French Optical Societies (SFO), and member of both the International OFS Conference and the European Workshop on Optical Fiber Sensors (EWOFS) technical committees. Ferdinand can be reached by e-mail at [email protected]