From Montpellier 1985 to Montpellier 2007

Abstract

Since the pioneering meeting in 1981 in Padova, the international sol–gel community (now represented by the ISGS—International Sol–Gel Society) has celebrated advances in sol–gel science and technology in what has now become an important biannual conference series. The aim of the first meeting was to bring together eminent scientists working in this field throughout the world, to promote the exchange of ideas and the development of sol–gel materials with new potential applications. In September 1985, the third meeting in this series (the ‘‘Third International Workshop on Glasses and Glass Ceramics from Gels’’) was held in Montpellier (France). Twenty-two years later (in 2007), it returned to Montpellier as the ‘‘14th International Sol–Gel Conference’’. The outstanding success of this most recent meeting makes it tempting to offer a brief overview of the striking evolution of sol–gel science and technology over the past two decades. Thus, the original ‘‘workshop’’ has now become a ‘‘conference’’, with two parallel sessions featuring nearly 80 talks and more than 450 posters by delegates from 41 countries. This reflects the interest of the scientific community in the multidisciplinary field now simply referred to as ‘‘sol–gel’’, which has now grown well beyond its origins in traditional materials science underpinning development in glasses and ceramics. Historically the ninth workshop held in 1997 in Sheffield (England) was the first to extend the focus of the workshops to include ‘‘Hybrids and Nanocomposites from Gels’’, acknowledging the considerable developments in organic– inorganic materials. Combining organic and inorganic functionalities through a sophisticated ‘‘bottom up’’ approach, such hybrid materials considerably extended the range of accessible properties and inherent versatility of sol–gel materials. This approach led to new applications in photonics, sensing and electrochemistry. In the field of macromolecular chemistry, it led to hybrid nanocomposites, including polymers reinforced with inorganic nanofillers, as well as inorganic nanoparticles coated with an organic layer, and even systems with two interpenetrating continuous phases. The burst of research on nanoporous materials, synthesised by using self-assembling organic species as supramolecular templates stood out in the late nineties. It led to the development of materials with periodic porosity and hierarchical structures resulting in considerable technical developments, especially in the implementation of nanostructured films. In more recent times, the evolution of the field towards medical applications (drug delivery, bio-imaging etc.) and biomaterials is striking. Following the pioneering works of David Avnir and Jacques Livage, there is currently a growing interest in materials at the interface with biology such as those stemming from the encapsulation of enzymes and living cells in gels. This volume is the first of the Special Issues of the Journal of Sol–Gel Science and Technology devoted to the 14th International Sol–Gel Conference. It features work presented by Keynote and Invited speakers, including the work of the recipients of the Ulrich Awards and the Life Achievement Award. It is intended to provide an overview of the current state of—and key developments in—sol–gel science and technology and to illustrate the unique ‘‘melting pot’’ of knowledge, skills and concepts which will stimulate the development of tomorrow’s innovative technologies. We hope that you share our sense of excitement about the directions in which the field is evolving, as it continues to build up on its strong foundations in physics, biology and molecular chemistry. M. W. C. Man A. Vioux (&) Institut Charles Gerhardt, Montpellier, France e-mail: vioux@univ-montp2.fr