A quantum organic dye on nanostructured sapphire pH sensor for reliable long-term monitoring

Offentlig prosjektsammendrag

pH is an important environmental parameter in the ocean, especially in the field of climate research and aquaculture. As an example pH is an essential parameter for the survival and well-being of farmed fish. Today most pH measurements are obtained by use of so called pH electrodes. These are simple and affordable sensors but require frequent maintenance and calibration in order to provide reliable data. For parameters that need to be measured continuously this is a large drawback. The aim of this project is to develop a new optical measurement method that makes it possible to achieve significant improvements with respect to measurement stability and maintenance intervals. When subjected to the appropriate light, for instance blue light, some fluorescence dyes will convert this energy and emit it as light with a longer wavelength, for instance red light. By using dyes where this feature also is highly dependent on the surrounding ionic charge it is possible to use the change in fluorescence as a basis for pH measurement. In this project we aim to develop a resilient film where such a dye is embedded and also a sensor concept that may be used to interrogate this fluorescence.