Chapter 8: Use of Metal–Organic Frameworks in the Detection Stage of Analysis/Miniaturization Devices

Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) have prominent features in comparison to conventional porous materials that make them ideal and superior sensing materials for the detection of various organic and inorganic analytes using different types of sensors. Generally, in MOF-based detection systems, any alteration in MOF features that is contingent on the guest molecule (the analyte) can be used as a signal that has a clear relationship with the concentration of the desired analyte. In this respect, MOF-based sensors can be divided into different groups based on the measured sensing signal type including electrochemical, optical, mechanical, and photo-electrochemical sensors. This chapter is focused on the applications of MOFs as sensing materials in different sensor types. The advantages and disadvantages of each type are compared critically and some important conclusions are made for future work.