The ability to monitor gas species selectively, sensitively, and reliably in extreme temperatures and harsh conditions is critically important for more efficient energy production using conventional fossil energy based production technologies, enabling advanced technologies for fossil based power plants of the future, and improving efficiency in domestic manufacturing industries. Optical waveguide based sensing platforms have become increasingly important but a need exists for materials that exhibit useful changes in optical properties in response to changing gas atmospheres at high temperatures. In this manuscript, the onset of a near-IR absorption associated with an increase in free carrier density in doped metal oxide nanoparticles to form so-called conducting metal oxides is discussed in the context of results obtained for undoped and Al-doped ZnO nanoparticle based films. Detailed film characterization results are presented along with measured changes in optical absorption resulting from various high temperature treatments in a range of gas atmospheres. Optical property changes are also discussed in the context of a simple model for optical absorption in conducting metal oxide nanoparticles and thin films. The combination of experimental results and theoretical modeling presented here suggests that such materials have potential for high temperature optical gas sensing applications. Simulated sensing experiments were performed at 500 degrees C and a useful, rapid, and reproducible near-IR optical sensing response to H-2 confirms that this class of materials shows great promise for optical gas sensing. Published by Elsevier B. V.