Optical Sensors Research Group

Optical chemical sensors are devices that are measuring real time and reversibly the concentration of a selected analyte in a sample. They are used for measuring different gases (e.g. CO, CO2, O2, NH3) ions (e.g. pH, K+, Cl-) or other molecules (glucose, carbamid). Optical sensors can be applied in environmental (air, water) or industrial process monitoring, in health industry (e.g. blood monitoring).

Optical sensors contain immobilized molecules, often indicators, in a thin layer converting the chemical information (i.e. the concentration change) into optical signal change. Our group is dealing with the development and with the related research of the sensing layer. The sensing layer of an optical sensor is usually made of a polymer. This contains all the components required for the selective recognition of the analyte and for transducing its presence into optical change. Absorption or fluorescence change based sensors contain colourful indicators. Recently we started to prepare polymeric indicators where well known indicator molecules are bound together forming a polymeric chain. As alternative, indicators with other monomers are co-polymerized for better sensing properties. The polymeric indicators will be cast onto a transparent solid support or they are bound to the surface of silica nanobeads. The latter often contains a second, inert indicator for internal referencing. Our sensors are usually based on fluorescence or colour change measurements.