Novel Materials and Applications of Electronic Noses and Tongues

Abstract

This introductory article describes the content of the October 2004 issue of MRS Bulletin focusing on novel materials and applications of electronic noses and tongues.The articles in this issue review the state of the art in materials, devices, and data processing algorithms used in electronic olfaction and taste systems. The most common gas- and liquid-phase analyte detection tools are presented and compared with traditional chemical analysis instrumentation such as gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy systems. Metal oxides, polymer/polymer composites, and dyes are covered in these articles as key sensing materials. Resistive, optical, electrochemical, and other types of electronic nose and tongue systems are reviewed, and their use in diverse applications, including environmental and food-quality monitoring and medical diagnostics, is discussed.

DNA‐decorated carbon nanotubes for chemical sensing

“…The number of distinct ssDNA 24-mers is large, and they should all bind readily to SWNTs by π−π stacking. It should be possible to create large numbers of sensors with varied odor responses, an important building block of "electronic nose" and "electronic tongue" systems [22].…”

Featuring of bacterial contamination of wounds by dynamic response of SnO2 gas sensor array

“…The EN systems are based on gas sensitive structures that are not selective to particular gas and, in general, any of such sensors responds to various gases. It was proved by numerous studies that the EN system based on an array of the sensors is highly selective and, therefore, acceptable for identification of target gases and odours in the atmosphere [18,19]. Based on the understanding of principles of the EN functioning it was commonly accepted that the application of the EN technology for direct detection of the infectious agents is doubtful.…”

Can odors of TCM be captured by electronic nose? The novel quality control method for musk by electronic nose coupled with chemometrics

“…Nowadays, positive applications of E-nose technology have been successfully applied in different fields, such as quality assessment of food products [12][13][14][15][16], medical diagnostics [17,18] as well as in the automobile industry [19]. The main purpose of E-nose application is to classify the quality grade of the materials [20][21][22]. Traditional drugs have some similar characteristics to food, as well as having some unique odors.…”