New inverse opal hydrogels as platform for detecting macromolecules In this thesis a route to temperature pH solvent 1 2 diol and protein responsive sensors made of biocompatible and low fouling materials is established. These sensor devices are based on the sensitivemodulation of the visual band gap of a photonic crystal (PhC) which is induced by the selective binding of analytes triggering a volume phase transition.The PhCs introduced by this work show a high sensitivity not only for small biomolecules but also for large analytes such as glycopolymers or proteins. This enables the PhC to act as a sensor that detects analytes without the need of complex equipment. Due to their periodical dielectric structure PhCs prevent the propagation of specific wavelengths. A change of the periodicity parameters is thus indicated by a change in the reflected wavelengths. In the case explored the PhC sensors are implemented as periodically structured responsive hydrogels in formof an inverse opal. The stimuli sensitive inverse opal hydrogels (IOHs) were prepared using a sacrificial opal ...