Functional Hybrid Materials via Sol–Gel Processing: Design and Properties

Dear Colleagues,

Functional hybrid materials are of great importance for many applications and are widely used in the production of electronic devices and sensors, catalysis, energy storage, and medicine. Combining inorganic (nano)particles with various organic components may result in hybrid materials with enhanced mechanical, optical, electronic, and magnetic properties. However, designing and producing such materials with controlled properties is often challenging. Sol–gel processing is a versatile approach to producing high-purity nanomaterials with tailored structures and properties at low costs. Recently, the sol–gel route has been proven to be suitable for the encapsulation of various proteins, antibodies, enzymes, and bacteria, leading to new hybrid materials with broad applicability in biomedicine. However, the structure and properties of the produced materials are highly dependent on the processing parameters and post-synthesis processing, such as thermal treatment or coatings. For this Special Issue, we intend to gather original research and review articles on the production of functional hybrid materials via sol–gel processing and their characterization and applications.

Dr. Erika Andrea Levei
Guest Editor

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 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Molecules 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 2700 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.

• sol–gel synthesis
• hybrid materials
• biomedicine
• encapsulation of biomolecules
• catalysis
• magnetic behavior
• structural properties
• thermal behavior