Light-addressable photoelectrochemical sensors (LAPECS) have gained increasing attention as a promising platform for multiplexed detection owing to their integration of photo-addressing and photoelectrochemical techniques. By using programmable illumination to confine photoinduced electron transfer to specific electrode regions, this straightforward strategy enables high-throughput and multiplexed detection and has shown promise in biomedical diagnostics, environmental monitoring, and food safety analysis. In this review, we provide a comprehensive overview of the fundamental principles and the structural and functional components of LAPECS. This review also summarizes three representative operational modes: multi-electrode parallel, single-electrode multi-channel partitioning, and microarray chip-based modes. We further discuss emerging solutions, including advanced recognition interfaces, miniaturized designs, and machine learning-assisted data processing, to address current challenges in LAPECS, such as limited specificity, signal interference, and integration complexity. Finally, the current research challenges and future prospects of LAPECS are discussed.
Yang et al. (2026) studied this question.