Luminescence-based sensors and biosensors: from fundamental mechanistic innovations to healthcare applications

The increasing interconnection between human, animal, and environmental health has made the emergence of infectious diseases and antimicrobial resistance one of the most pressing global challenges of our time. The complexity of these threats, intensified by globalization, environmental degradation, and the misuse of biocides, demands a new generation of diagnostic technologies capable of ensuring early, accurate, and accessible detection of pathogens and bioactive molecules. Within this context, the development of luminescence–based sensing and biosensing systems represents a strategic response to the urgent need for fast and reliable analytical tools for healthcare and environmental monitoring. Hence, this thesis presents a comprehensive study on the design and development of supramolecular and/or electrochemiluminescent (ECL) systems, aimed at both (i) designing and investigating novel fundamental light-generation mechanisms, and (ii) advancing the practical performance of biosensing platforms through the development of surface-cooperative hybridization strategies. Through the rational integration of host–guest chemistry with photoluminescent and electrochemical responses, new architectures have been obtained where supramolecular recognition can coexist with light generation and/or electrical changes in the system, all within single, self-contained entities. Thus, this work combines fundamental mechanistic studies – providing insight into the processes governing ECL generation and enhancement – with the construction of functional devices for the detection of (bio)relevant analytes. These studies elucidate how supramolecular interactions can modulate electron transfer and excited state generation pathways, offering a new level of control over emission efficiency and analytical response. By coupling molecular design, supramolecular recognition, and materials engineering, this research contributes to establishing luminescence– and ECL–based systems as versatile analytical tools. The resulting platforms pave the way toward next-generation, miniaturized, and multiplexed diagnostic technologies that can be adapted to a variety of biomedical and environmental contexts, in alignment with the holistic vision of the One Health concept.