A NEW TECHNOLOGY IS AIMED AT DEVELOPING A PORTABLE SENSING DEVICE THAT WILL MAKE IT FEASIBLE TO PERFORM RAPID TESTS FOR SMALL AMOUNTS OF PESTICIDE RESIDUES IN AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS AND GROUND WATER. THE APPROACH INTEGRATES SIMPLE AND INEXPENSIVE PAPER TEST STRIPS WITH AN ELECTRONIC DETECTOR FOR MEASURING TARGET PESTICIDES IN ONE SIMPLE STEP. NEW NANOMATERIALS ARE USED TO ENHANCE SIGNALS AND REPORT THE RESULTS. THESE NANOMATERIALS ARE SYNTHESIZED USING MULTIPLE METAL NANOMATERIALS THAT ARE HIGHLY REACTIVE AND VERY STABLE. THE TECHNIQUE WILL USE SIMPLE PAPER TEST STRIPS COMBINED WITH SENSITIVE ELECTRONICS FOR DETERMINING CONCENTRATIONS OF MULTIPLE PESTICIDES AT THE SAME TIME IN FOOD SAMPLES.THIS NEW APPROACH DIFFERS FROM CONVENTIONAL PESTICIDE TESTS BECAUSE THE PAPER STRIPS ARE INEXPENSIVE, COMPARED TO SOPHISTICATED LABORATORY EQUIPMENT USED NOW, AND PRODUCE SIGNALS RAPIDLY IN MINUTES RATHER THAN HOURS. WHAT'S MORE, THE NEW NANOMATERIALS WILL RESULT HIGH SENSITIVITY SO THAT PESTICIDE CONCENTRATIONS 1,000 TIMES LOWER CAN BE DETECTED COMPARED TO CURRENT APPROACHES. THE ELECTRICAL SIGNALS HELP QUANTIFY PESTICIDE LEVELS WHICH IS MUCH MORE ACCURATE THAN CURRENT TEST STRIPS WHICH ONLY GIVE A YES/NO ANSWER THROUGH A COLOR-CHANGE. CONSIDERING THE EASE OF OPERATION, LOW COST, AND HIGH SENSITIVITY FOR THESE ECO-FRIENDLY TESTS, THESE SMART SENSORS CAN BE EASILY TRANSFERRED INTO FARM PRACTICES FOR RELIABLE AND COST-EFFECTIVE DETECTION OF PESTICIDE RESIDUES. THIS WILL HAVE SIGNIFICANT IMPACT IN GUIDING PESTICIDE APPLICATION AND HARVESTED PRODUCT PRACTICES.