Table 4.
Polymer host materials often used in sensors for O2 (in planar or fiber optic format, or as nanobeads)
| Host polymer | Comments |
|---|---|
| Silicone rubbers | Low cost; high optical purity; excellent gas permeability, good thermal and chemical stability; good adhesion to glass; very hydrophobic; poor “solvent” |
| Fluorosilicones | Like silicones but with even better permeability for O2 |
| Polystyrene (PS) and ethyl cellulose | Low cost; easy handling; fairly good permeability for oxygen; PS displays intrinsic fluorescence under UV light; PS is often used in the form of μm‐ or nm‐sized beads |
| Poly(1‐trimethylsilyl‐1‐propyne) (PTMSP) | Extremely high gas permeability; expensive; prone to aging effects; often used in pressure‐sensitive paints to measure barometric pressure via pO2 |
| Organically modified silica gels | Can be prepared from various chemical precursors; hydrophobicity and permeability are widely tunable; fluorinated ormosils have even higher permeability for O2; good mechanical and chemical stability |