Method and Apparatus for Spectroscopic Measurements in the Combustion Zone of a Gas Turbine Engine

A gas turbine engine comprising:

• a combustion zone between an inner and outer casing;
• a port in the outer casing operatively associated with the combustion chamber substantially opposite a portion of the inner casing;
• and
• a transmitting and receiving pair of optics optically coupled with the port, the transmitting and receiving pair of optics being configured so that the transmitting optic transmits a beam off the portion of the inner casing and the receiving optic receives at least a portion of the beam reflected off the portion of the inner casing.

An apparatus for measuring combustion parameters of a gas turbine engine, the gas turbine engine having a combustion zone defined between an inner and an outer casting and port in the outer casing, the apparatus comprising:

• a laser generating a beam of light;
• a transmitting optic optically coupled to the laser transmitting the beam;
• and
• a receiving optic, the receiving optic and the transmitting optic being configured for operative association with the port in the outer casing of the gas turbine engine, whereby the transmitting optic and the receiving optic are optically coupled by reflecting the beam off a portion of the inner casing.