The Future for Gas Sensors? MNT Gas Sensor Forum: progress to date

Gas sensor technology has been slow to evolve, with electrochemical cells dominating the industrial safety market and metal oxides used where cost must be at a minimum. But all this could be set to change. The gas sensor industry is not as large as telecommunications, portable computers, mobile phones or the consumer entertainment markets, but can benefit from the advances in the core technologies these markets fuel and can use the new components designed for these larger markets. owever, the gas detection market is fragmented and the new technological opportunities are diverse. Wanting to better understand the next step in gas sensing, the DTI commissioned two workshops, through the MNT (Micro and Nano Technology) Initiative. Although their report was adequate, many of the expert participants felt that a deeper understanding was needed for this difficult industry, so a grassroots group was formed, the MNT Gas Sensor Forum. In September 2005 volunteers formed a Steering Committee (members are listed at the end of this article). The result is a roadmap that brings together user needs with technical advances in micro and nano technology.