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Feature Papers in Physical Sensors 2026
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Feature Papers in Physical Sensors 2026

A special issue of Sensors (ISSN 1424-8220). This special issue belongs to the section "Physical Sensors".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2026 | Viewed by 2062

Editors

Dr. Guillermo Villanueva

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Mechanical Engineering Institute, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Route Cantonale, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
Interests: MEMS; NEMS; piezoelectric transduction; resonators; nonlinearity; 2D materials
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Sabina Merlo

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Electrical, Computer and Biomedical Engineering, University of the Studies of Pavia, 27100 Pavia, Italy
Interests: MEMS; MOEMS; optical sensors; interferometry; microphotonics; biophotonics; biosensors; lab on a chip
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Aldo Minardo

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Engineering, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", 81031 Aversa, Italy
Interests: distributed optical fiber sensors; strain sensors; signal processing
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Cosimo Trono

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
“Nello Carrara” Institute of Applied Physics, IFAC-CNR, Via Madonna del Piano 10, I-50019 Firenze, Italy
Interests: optics; optical sensors; fibre optic sensors; point of care testing (POCT)
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce that the Physical Sensors Section is currently compiling a collection of papers submitted exclusively by Editorial Board Members of our section and outstanding scholars in this research field.

The purpose of this Special Issue is to publish a set of insightful, influential and original articles or reviews in which our Section’s Editorial Board Members discuss key topics in the field. We expect these papers to be widely read and highly influential within the field. All papers in this Special Issue will be collected in a printed book after the deadline and widely promoted.

We would also like to take this opportunity to call on the most accomplished scholars to join the Physical Sensors Section so that we may reach even more milestones together.

Dr. Guillermo Villanueva
Prof. Dr. Sabina Merlo
Prof. Dr. Aldo Minardo
Dr. Cosimo Trono
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sensors is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • acoustic, sound and vibration
  • geophones
  • hydrophones
  • microphones
  • seismometers
  • sound locators
  • ultrasonic sensors, electric current, electric potential, magnetic and radio
  • current sensors
  • hall effect sensors
  • magnetic anomaly detectors
  • magnetometers
  • magnetoresistances
  • MEMS magnetic field sensors
  • planar hall sensors
  • radio direction finders
  • voltage detector pressure, force, density and level
  • pressure sensors
  • tactile sensors
  • force gauge and force sensors
  • level sensors
  • piezocapacitive pressure sensors
  • piezoelectric sensors
  • torque sensor thermal, heat and temperature
  • microwave radiometers
  • infrared thermometers
  • special sensor microwave/imager mechanical
  • mechanical sensors, transducers and actuators
  • alarm sensors
  • motion detectors
  • proximity sensors
  • infrared sensor triangulation sensor position, angle, displacement, distance, speed and acceleration
  • accelerometers
  • capacitive displacement sensors
  • capacitive sensing
  • piezoelectric accelerometers
  • position sensors
  • angular rate sensors
  • motion sensors
  • tilt sensors
  • tachometers
  • ultrasonic thickness gauges
  • variable reluctance sensors
  • speed sensors and others
  • quantum sensors
  • sensor array
  • underwater sensors
  • MEMS sensors

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  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Related Special Issue

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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13 pages, 3547 KB  
Article
Wafer-Based Evaluation of the Effects of Center Frequency and F-Number on Lateral Resolution in Scanning Acoustic Microscopy
by Minseok Son, Jincheol Kim, Yuon Song, Juho Kim, Jongmyoung Choi and Jeesu Kim
Sensors 2026, 26(13), 4058; https://doi.org/10.3390/s26134058 - 26 Jun 2026
Viewed by 219
Abstract
Scanning acoustic microscopy is a useful non-destructive imaging technique for semiconductor inspection, providing acoustic contrast without physical sectioning. However, the selection of an ultrasound transducer for high-quality imaging is not determined by the operating center frequency alone. The focusing condition, represented by the [...] Read more.
Scanning acoustic microscopy is a useful non-destructive imaging technique for semiconductor inspection, providing acoustic contrast without physical sectioning. However, the selection of an ultrasound transducer for high-quality imaging is not determined by the operating center frequency alone. The focusing condition, represented by the F-number, also plays a critical role in determining the lateral resolution. In this study, the combined effects of the center frequency and F-number on lateral resolution were investigated using wafer-based test samples. Focused ultrasound transducers with different center frequencies were used to image a striped resolution target for quantitative lateral resolution analysis. In addition, a custom-fabricated silicon wafer containing void-mimicking patterns was also imaged for qualitative evaluation. The results show that a higher frequency does not necessarily guarantee better lateral resolution. In fact, a lower-frequency transducer with tighter focusing showed greater image quality compared to a higher-frequency transducer with a larger F-number. These findings indicate that both frequency and F-number should be jointly considered when selecting ultrasound transducers for semiconductor inspection. This wafer-based evaluation provides practical guidance for optimizing imaging conditions in scanning acoustic microscopy, according to target feature size and inspection requirements. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Papers in Physical Sensors 2026)
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13 pages, 4429 KB  
Article
Compensating Couplant Effects in Phased-Array Ultrasonic ToF Sensing for Residual Stress
by Brandon Mills, Yashar Javadi and Charles N. Macleod
Sensors 2026, 26(13), 3975; https://doi.org/10.3390/s26133975 - 23 Jun 2026
Viewed by 282
Abstract
Residual stress (RS) is a key integrity parameter after welding and additive manufacturing, motivating portable sensing methods for in-situ assessment. Phased Array Ultrasonics for Residual Stress (PAURS) treats a phased-array probe as a time-of-flight (ToF) sensor and infers RS from ToF changes of [...] Read more.
Residual stress (RS) is a key integrity parameter after welding and additive manufacturing, motivating portable sensing methods for in-situ assessment. Phased Array Ultrasonics for Residual Stress (PAURS) treats a phased-array probe as a time-of-flight (ToF) sensor and infers RS from ToF changes of the longitudinal critically refracted (LCR) wave propagating near the surface. In practical deployments, however, the ToF sensing chain can be susceptible to systematic bias from sensor–specimen interface variability (couplant layer thickness) which can dominate the inferred stress uncertainty if not quantified and corrected. This study combines numerical modelling with experimental validation to (i) characterise couplant-induced sensitivity in LCR ToF sensing, (ii) propagate this effect into RS error/uncertainty, and (iii) demonstrate a model-informed compensation strategy suitable for practical calibration workflows. Simulations show that couplant thickness variations can introduce RS errors of ~36 MPa (~13% of yield strength). The proposed compensation reduces ToF bias to 0 ns under idealised simulated conditions and to ~0.3 ns in experiments, corresponding to ~1.1 MPa RS error (~0.4% of yield strength). These results provide configuration-specific guidance for sensor calibration and uncertainty reporting in phased-array ultrasonic RS sensing, and establish a foundation for future in-process sensing of residual stress and microstructure evolution. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Papers in Physical Sensors 2026)
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Review

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35 pages, 6582 KB  
Review
Chip Calorimetry for Single-Cell Analysis: Advances, Challenges, and Opportunities
by Yara Abdelaal and Luis Guillermo Villanueva
Sensors 2026, 26(7), 2193; https://doi.org/10.3390/s26072193 - 1 Apr 2026
Viewed by 935
Abstract
Heat is a crucial factor in all biological processes; therefore, measuring heat change can be a powerful tool for monitoring bioprocesses and metabolism, analyzing biomolecular interactions, and studying cells. The insights gained from thermal measurements can also aid healthcare applications, such as drug [...] Read more.
Heat is a crucial factor in all biological processes; therefore, measuring heat change can be a powerful tool for monitoring bioprocesses and metabolism, analyzing biomolecular interactions, and studying cells. The insights gained from thermal measurements can also aid healthcare applications, such as drug susceptibility testing and disease diagnosis. Calorimetry, the science of measuring heat, has seen many advances. However, the pressing need for miniaturization, combined with breakthroughs in micro- and nanofabrication, has led to the development of chip calorimeters and accelerated their innovation. In this comprehensive review, we discuss significant advances in chip calorimetry, including figures of merit, various applications, and key challenges. The review offers an overview of the current state of the art, highlighting prospects and opportunities. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Feature Papers in Physical Sensors 2026)
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