Diagnostic applications of organically doped sol-gel porous glass

The development of room temperature moulding of metal oxides via the sol-gel process opened the way for the invention of a new type of material, namely organically doped sol-gel ceramics. These combine the processing versatility of sol-gel technology, the photometric and chemical properties of silica and metal oxides and the specificity and optical properties of their organic and bioorganic dopants. The diagnostic applications of this new type of material, their advantages, limitations and future prospects are reviewed and discussed