The NATO Advanced Study Institute on “Sensors for Environment, Health and Security: Advanced Materials and Technology” was held in Vichy (France) on September 16–27, 2007 where more than 65 participants, ranging from Ph. D. students to experienced senior scientists, met and exchanged ideas and know-how in a friendly atmosphere. The present book intends to cover the main topics of this NATO ASI through 32 chapters distributed over two parts (Part I: “Materials and Technologies” and Part II: “Applications to Environment, Health and Security”). The scientific programme of the NATO ASI consisted in 28 1-hour lectures given by 14 invited lecturers, 5 additional 1-hour lectures given by seminar speakers, 22 oral presentations by selected ASI participants and a poster session. The programme was divided into four sessions: (1) Advanced materials and technologies; (2) Sensors for environment; (3) Sensors for health; (4) Sensors for security. During the “Advanced Materials and Technologies” session (Part I of the present book), the lectures were dedicated to critical analyses of current methods for the synthesis of materials, nanomaterials (nanoparticles, nanowires, nanotubes, …) and nanocomposites to be used for the fabrication of sensing devices, mainly semiconductor sensors. Among the synthesis methods, chemical (sol-gel, etc. ) and physical methods (laser deposition, DC magnetron sputtering, etc. ) were discussed. Several lectures addressed characterization techniques and it was concluded that the physical and chemical control of the materials/nanomaterials, including surface chemistry, remains a key issue for the reproducibility of the final device.
The growing concern worldwide for air pollution, biological threats and security issues has led to an increasing demand for sensors in multiple application areas, thus calling for a fast development of small, reliable, inexpensive sensors which can be easily integrated in various devices and equipments. Research efforts worldwide span diverse areas, including new materials such as nanotubes and nanofibers, miniaturization of electronics through nanotechnology, or integration of several sensors in artificial noses, to name only a few. Most of the time, the research results reported at international conferences are scattered over different disciplines, such as materials science, electronic engineering, optics and photonics, nanotechnology, biochemistry and medicine, information technology, etc, thus making it difficult to get a clear picture of the advances in the sensing field.The present book covers the main topics presented at the NATO Advanced Study Institute on 'Sensors for Environment, Health and Security: Advanced Materials and Technologies' which was held in Vichy (France) on September 16-27, 2007.
The book aims at providing the reader with the most recent knowledge in sensing materials and sensor technologies, encompassing different kinds of materials and technologies (semiconductors, photonics, self-assembling, biology, etc). The detection of various analytes or signals (air pollution, biodetection, nuclear detection, etc) finds applications in environmental monitoring, health monitoring and seirity. The underlying physical and chemical phenomena responsible for the detection mechanisms, the most advanced technologies for sensor processing and fabrication, and the future challenges to be taken up are addressed in details by outstanding experts from the European Union, Russia and the USA.
