Current sensor trends, such as multianalyte capability, miniaturisation and patternability are important drivers for materials requirements in optical chemical sensors. In particular, issues such as enhanced sensitivity and printablity are key in developing optimised sensor materials for smart windows for bioprocessing applications. This study focuses on combining novel sol-gel-based hybrid matrices with engineered luminescent complexes to produce stable luminescence-based optical sensors with enhanced sensitivity for a range of analytes including oxygen, pH and carbon dioxide. As well as optimising sensor performance, issues such as surface modification of the plastic substrate and compatibility with different deposition techniques were addressed. Hybrid sol-gel matrices were developed using a range of precursors including tetraethoxysilane (TEOS), methyltriethoxysilane (MTEOS), ethyltriethoxysilane (ETEOS), n-propyltriethoxysilane (PTEOS), phenyltriethoxysilane (PhTEOS), and n-octyltriethoxysilane (C8TEOS). Oxygen sensing, based on luminescence quenching of ruthenium phenanthroline complexes, has been realised with each of these hybrid materials. Furthermore, the possibility of immobilising pH-indicators for pH and carbon dioxide sensing has been investigated with some success. In the context of in-situ monitoring of bioprocesses, issues such as humidity interference as well as the chemical robustness of the multianalyte platform, were addressed.
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