Optical Chemical Sensors (NATO Science Series II: Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry)

Chemical sensing using optics is under extensive research all over the world and many optical chemical sensors are finding increasing application in industry, environmental monitoring, medicine, biomedicine and chemical analysis. This is evidenced by an annual growth in the number of international scientific conferences in which advances in the field of optical chemical sensors are reported. These conferences, are, however, focused on disseminating the latest scientific results rather than providing in-depth education in the field of optical chemical sensors. In addition, the topic of optical chemical sensors is only just beginning to find its way into the curricula of universities and colleges in Europe and in the US. Due to the prominence that optical sensors are assuming, it has become more and more important to establish a framework for discussion and interchange, in addition to traditional conferences, to aid research and education in this important field. In the summer of 2004, the NATO A. S. I. on the subject “Optical Chemical Sensors” was organised in Erice, Sicily. This NATO A. S. I. was th the 40 Course of the International School of Quantum Electronics, under the auspices of the “Ettore Majorana Foundation and Center for Scientific Culture” and was directed by Dr. J. Homola of the Institute of Radio Engineering and Electronic (IREE) of the Academy of Sciences in Prague and by Dr. F. Baldini of the “Nello Carrara Institute of Applied Physics” (IFAC-CNR). BIRTH OF THE MASER AND LASER....Pages 1-15 FIBER OPTIC CHEMICAL SENSORS AND BIOSENSORS: A VIEW BACK....Pages 17-44 Front Matter....Pages I-XXXII FUNDAMENTALS OF OPTOELECTRONICS....Pages 47-58 OPTICAL FIBRES FOR OPTICAL SENSING....Pages 59-76 ABSORPTION-BASED SENSORS....Pages 77-98 FLUORESCENCE-BASED SENSORS....Pages 99-116 VIBRATIONAL SPECTROSCOPIC SENSORS Fundamentals, Instrumentation and Applications....Pages 117-155 CHEMILUMINESCENCE-BASED SENSORS....Pages 157-178 SENSORS BASED ON SPECTROSCOPY OF GUIDED WAVES....Pages 179-192 PLANAR OPTICAL SENSORS AND EVANESCENT WAVE EFFECTS....Pages 193-215 INTERFEROMETRY IN BIO- AND CHEMOSENSING....Pages 217-237 SURFACE-ENHANCED RAMAN SCATTERING....Pages 239-259 PLANAR WAVEGUIDING SYSTEMS FOR OPTICAL SENSING....Pages 261-280 ULTRACOMPACT OPTICAL SENSORS BASED ON HIGH INDEX-CONTRAST PHOTONIC STRUCTURES....Pages 281-295 POLYMERS FOR OPTICAL SENSORS....Pages 297-321 FUNDAMENTALS OF ENZYME-BASED SENSORS....Pages 323-352 SOL-GELS FOR OPTICAL SENSORS....Pages 353-385 METHODS FOR ATTACHMENT OF ANTIBODIES ONTO OPTICAL BIOSENSORS....Pages 387-401 Front Matter....Pages I-XXXII THE OPTICAL NOSE....Pages 405-415 INVASIVE SENSORS IN MEDICINE....Pages 417-435 Front Matter....Pages I-XXXII BIOSENSORS FOR DETECTION OF BIOTERRORIST THREATS....Pages 437-455 REVIEW OF METHODS OF OPTICAL GAS Detection by Direct Optical Spectroscopy, with Emphasis on Correlation Spectroscopy....Pages 457-477 DNA AND PROTEIN SENSOR ARRAYS....Pages 479-500 SENSORS FOR FOOD SAFETY AND SECURITY....Pages 501-514 OPTICAL CHEMICAL SENSORS FOR CULTURAL HERITAGE....Pages 515-526

The book is the output of the NATO Advanced Study Institute on Optical Chemical Sensors and is the 40th Course of the International School of Quantum Electronics. It covers all aspects related to optical chemical sensing by means of optical waveguides, from the fundamentals to the most recent applications.

The book also provides a view through the history of the development of these sensors, from the first laboratory prototypes up to the first commercial instrumentations, and contains also the lecture given by Nobel Laureate Charles Townes on the birth of maser and laser, which is considered to be a very important illustration on how new science and new technology develop.

Thanks to the high level of the contributors, among the most renowned specialists in their respective fields, and to its high interdisciplinary content, the book is an essential tool not only for any scientist who is working or intends to start working in the field of optical chemical sensing but for anyone who wishes to have a complete overview of the state of the art in the field.

The book is the output of the NATO Advanced Study Institute on Optical Chemical Sensors and is the 40th Course of the International School of Quantum Electronics. It covers all aspects related to optical chemical sensing by means of optical waveguides, from the fundamentals to the most recent applications. The book also provides a view through the history of the development of these sensors, from the first laboratory prototypes up to the first commercial instrumentations, and contains also the lecture given by Nobel Laureate Charles Townes on the birth of maser and laser, which is considered to be a very important illustration on how new science and new technology develop. Thanks to the high level of the contributors, among the most renowned specialists in their respective fields, and to its high interdisciplinary content, the book is an essential tool not only for any scientist who is working or intends to start working in the field of optical chemical sensing but for anyone who wishes to have a complete overview of the state of the art in the field