The following research is operated as a Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) initiative at Sandia National Laboratories. The long-term goals of the program include sophisticated diagnostics of advanced fuels testing for nuclear reactors for the Department of Energy (DOE) Gen IV program, with the future capability to provide real-time measurement of strain in fuel rod cladding during operation in situ at any research or power reactor in the United States. By quantifying the stress and strain in fuel rods, it is possible to significantly improve fuel rod design, and consequently, to improve the performance and lifetime of the cladding. During the past year of this program, two sets of experiments were performed: small-scale tests to ensure reliability of the gages, and reactor pulse experiments involving the most viable samples in the Annulated Core Research Reactor (ACRR), located onsite at Sandia. Strain measurement techniques that can provide useful data in the extreme environment of a nuclear reactor core are needed to characterize nuclear fuel rods. This report documents the progression of solutions to this issue that were explored for feasibility in FY12 at Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, NM.