**Part 4**

**Artificial Chemical Sensor** 

254 Advances in Chemical Sensors

S.C.Petittio, E.M. Marsh, and M.A. Langell, (2006), Adsorption of Bromobenzene on

pp.1309-18, ISSN 6106/1089-5647

Periodically Stepped and Nonstepped NiO(100), *J. Phy. Chem. B*, Vol.110, Issue 3,

**12** 

*USA* 

**Inspiration from Nature:** 

**Chemical Sensors** 

Kristina S. Mead *Denison University,* 

**Insights from Crustacean Chemical Sensors** 

The chemical sensors possessed by crustaceans are aesthetically beautiful and are deployed in many ways, depending on the ecological task being carried out by the animal, the nature of the chemical signal, and the dispersal characteristics of the environment. As many studies have indicated, they are engineering marvels, able to detect very low concentration of odorant molecules under difficult conditions, and also able to respond to evolutionary pressures, so that over time, populations that migrate to different habitats have evolved

While it may not be possible at this point to create "smart" materials that can evolve, we can learn from patterns of sensor structure observed in nature. This work typically involves comparative functional anatomy and biomechanics. We can also learn from patterns of sensor deployment. These studies examine the role of sensor movement relative to the animal, or the role of animal movement relative to the environment. These approaches often involve comparative behavioral observations of the animals followed by the development of algorithms that are then tested using biomimetic robots. The ability of the robots to perform basic olfactory tasks- such as finding an odor source- can indicate the validity of the

While interesting in their own right, these discoveries can also have profound medical, technical, and military implications. For example, researchers are investigating the use of animal-based search strategies to map chemical plumes, to pinpoint dangerous domestic gas leaks, to monitor hazardous water decontamination, to fine-tune the efforts of homeland

In this chapter, I plan to discuss approaches and key findings that detail the synergistic approach taken by biologists and engineers in tandem to analyze crustacean chemical sensors. I will start by describing how crustaceans use chemical sensors in a variety of impressive, ecologically critical tasks such as finding food, mates, habitat, avoiding predators, and even recognizing specific individual conspecifics. I will then detail the findings from mathematical models synthesizing these observations, as well as results from programmed robots and

sensor characteristics that match the features of their new surroundings.

programmed search strategies determined from animal behavior.

security in detecting chemical traces, etc.

**1. Introduction** 

**Can Lead to Successful Design of Artificial** 
