Materials Science and Engineering: Chapter 12. Towards Rational Design of Sensing Materials from Combinatorial Experiments

Sensing materials play a critical role in advancing selectivity, response speed, and sensitivity of gas determinations with sensors. The desirable capabilities of sensing materials originate from their numerous functional parameters, which can be tailored to meet specific sensing needs. By increasing the structural and functional complexity of sensing materials, the ability to rationally define the precise requirements that will result in desired materials properties becomes increasingly limited. Combinatorial experimentation methodologies impact all areas of sensing materials research. This chapter demonstrates the broad applicability of combinatorial technologies in discovery and optimization of new sensing materials for gas detection. We discuss general principles of combinatorial materials screening, followed by the discussion of the opportunities facilitated by combinatorial technologies for discovery and optimization of new sensing materials. We further critically analyze results of sensing materials development using discrete and gradient materials arrays. The emphasis of this chapter is on the analysis of results focused on the improvements of sensor selectivity and long-term stability of sensing materials. Examples from a wide variety of sensors based on various energy-transduction principles that involve radiant, mechanical, and electrical types of energy demonstrate the impact of combinatorial methodologies across diverse kinds of sensing materials.