Since several years, there is a strong trend in integrating electronics in machines and everyday items to make them “intelligent”. For example, electronics are integrated in clothes. In addition, sensors are integrated in materials too. This is also necessary for the electronics because without sensors microprocessors cannot communicate with the environment. Integrating sensors in materials has the advantage of getting measurement quantities out of the material. The scientific community has to answer a fundamental question: How does the integrated sensor change the macroscopic behavior (e.g. thermal or mechanical) of the material or of the component? This article focuses on the scientific and technical challenges for developing material integrated sensors. Various examples are provided through which future scientific goals can be focused upon.
