Recent Advances in Paper-Based Analytical Devices: A Pivotal Step Forward in Building Next-Generation Sensor Technology

Of late, the paper has attracted the significant attention of researchers as a substrate for sensing devices. Paper is a fibrous network of cellulose, a ubiquitous biopolymer, which is fast emerging as a sustainable raw material and replacing the non-renewable ones. Paper possesses many striking features such as hydrophilicity and low-cost, which make it an excellent choice for sensing platforms. Paper-based sensing devices are flexible, foldable, portable, economical, user-friendly and disposable. Recently, numerous works have reported the use of paper substrates for sensor fabrication in the fields of biomedical health care, environmental analysis, food and water quality, and forensics. The current chapter aims to present a concise overview of the recent developments in the area of paper-based sensing, particularly in the ongoing decade. It briefly discusses the sensing approach for the detection of various analytes and focuses on their applications in various sectors.