Oxygen sensing properties of optical sensor using layer of 1-pyrenedecanoic acid and perfluorodecanoic acid chemisorbed onto anodic oxidized aluminium plate was investigated. The ratio I-0/I-100, where I-0 and I-100 represent the detected fluorescence intensities from a substrate exposed to 100% argon and 100% oxygen, respectively, is used as an indicator of the sensitivity of the sensing film. The I-0/I-100 value of 1-pyrenedecanoic acid and perfluorodecanoic acid layer chemisorbed onto the anodic oxidized aluminium plate is estimated to be 18.6. On the other hand, the I-0/I-100 value of 1-pyrenedecanoic acid chemisorbed onto the anodic oxidized aluminiurn plate is 20.2. The response time of the 1-pyrenedecanoic acid layer is 8.5 s on going from argon to oxygen and the recovery time is 40 s on going from oxygen to argon, respectively. In contrast, the response and recovery times of the 1-pyrenedecanoic acid and perfluorodecanoic acid chemisorbed layer are 3.0 and 22 s, respectively. Thus, the optical oxygen sensor using 1-pyrenedecanoic acid and perfluorodecanoic acid chemisorbed layer has rapid response and recovery times. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.