An optical reflected device using a molecularly imprinted polymer film sensor.

A novel and highly selective optical sensor with molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) film was fabricated and investigated. The optical sensor head employing a medium finesse molecularly imprinted polymer film has been fabricated and characterised. A blank polymer and formaldehyde imprinted polymer were using methacrylic acid as the functional monomer and the ethylene glycol dimethacrylate as a crosslinker. The transduction mechanism is discussed based on the changes of optical intensity of molecularly imprinted polymer film acting as an optical reflected sensor. Template molecules, which diffused into MIP, could cause film density, and refractive index change, and then induce measurable optical reflective intensity shifts. Based on the reflective intensity shifts, an optical reflection detection of formaldehyde was achieved by illuminating MIP with a laser beam. For the same MIP, the reflective intensity shift was proportional to the amount of template molecule. This optical sensor, based on an artificial recognition system, demonstrates long-time stability and resistance to harsh chemical environments. As the research moves forward gradually, we establish the possibilities of quantitative analysis primly, setting the groundwork to the synthesis of the molecular imprinted optical fiber sensor. The techniques show good reproducibility and sensitivity and will be of significant interest to the MIP community.