The detection properties of ammonia SAW gas sensors based on L-glutamic acid hydrochloride

This study has investigated an improved surface acoustic wave (SAW) ammonia gas sensor based on L-glutamic acid hydrochloride. It presents an excellent reversibility, sensitivity, and repeatability to ammonia. The frequency shift versus ammonia concentration above 40 degrees C was a monotonic function, and the limit of detection of the sensor at 50 degrees C was 80 ppb.     

Mercuric ion sensing by a film bulk acoustic resonator

This paper describes a film bulk acoustic resonator (FBAR) mass sensor for detecting Hg2+ ion in water with excellent sensitivity and selectivity. When a thin Au film was deposited on the surface of an FBAR, the resonant frequency shifted to a lower value when the film was exposed to Hg2+ in aqueous solution. The FBAR sensor detected as low as 10(-9) M Hg2+ (0.2 ppb Hg2+) in water. Other ions such as K+, Ca2+, Mg2+, Zn2+, and Ni2+ had little or no effect on the resonant frequency of the FBAR. Coating of the FBAR Au surface with a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) of 4-mercaptobenzoic acid decreased the Hg2+ response.     

Use of a geometry optimized fiber-optic surface-enhanced Raman scattering sensor in trace detection

A novel SERS (surface-enhanced Raman scattering) sensor has been recently developed; its peculiar geometry is able to increase considerably both the SERS active surface and the number of internal reflections at the interface between silica and silver, thus allowing an increase of the signal intensity. The aim of this work is to demonstrate that this sensor could be efficiently used to detect some molecules such as illegally used veterinary medicine (crystal violet and malachite green) below the ppb detection limit. The advantages of this sensor with respect to other detection techniques are not only the higher sensitivity, but also the fast response and the possibility of coupling with a portable Raman spectrometer for "on-field" measurements. The ability of the sensor to work under real environmental conditions in the presence of many cationic and anionic species has been tested both in solutions containing sodium and chlorine ions and in water coming from the aqueduct of Milan and from the (normally polluted) river Serio.     

Multistrip couplers for surface acoustic wave sensor application

We present a new surface acoustic wave gas sensor utilizing a multistrip coupler on LiNbO₃ and LiTaO₃ substrates and using copper phthalocyanine as a sensor layer for NO₂. The sensor signal originates from surface conductivity changes induced by the adsorbed NO₂. This variation in conductivity leads to a changing coupling efficiency of the multistrip coupler and thus to variations in the insertion loss of the device. Rayleigh and shear wave devices with operating frequencies of 170 and 243 MHz have been tested. A sensitivity of better than 1 ppb NO₂ in air was achieved     

Improvement in lifetime of pseudo-Schottky diode sensor: Towards selective detection of O3 in a gaseous mixture (O3, NO2)

This article concerns a pseudo-Schottky diode Palladium/Indium-Phosphide (Pd-InP) gas sensor. The catalytic activity of such a palladium layer coupled with a pseudo-Schottky structure enables the measurement of very low concentrations of two highly oxidant gases: nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) and ozone (O₃). The submission of the sensor to long O₃ exposures leads to a degradation of its sensor characteristics (response time, recovery time and sensitivity) due to oxidation of the palladium metallization by O₃. Therefore, to improve sensor lifetime and reduce drift, a methodology based on cyclic regeneration of the sensor's palladium surface (carbon monoxide (CO) reduction associated with thermal treatment) has been developed. The pseudo-Schottky gas sensor associated with this methodology exhibits reproducible responses, significant resolution and real time detection in the range of 20-100 ppb for NO₂ and O₃. Moreover, a sensor exposed to 20 ppb of O₃ presented twice the response of the same sensor exposed to 100 ppb of NO₂ (10.5 nA for 6.5 nA). Selectivity towards O₃, with this methodology, is demonstrated in the case of atmospheric pollution monitoring.     

Excitation and temperature stability of PCB fluxgate sensor

Printed circuit board (PCB) integrated inductors have been adapted for operation as fluxgate sensors. A ring core is made from an electrodeposited permalloy thin film and is sandwiched between the layers of the PCB. The sensor excitation winding is also integrated into the PCB design. The pick-up coil is wound around the frame of the PCB core. Different types of current excitation waveforms with tuned and nontuned pick-up coils were used. The achieved sensitivities for 60 turns of tuned/nontuned pick-up coil, a sinusoidal waveform excitation current of Irms=300 mA, and an excitation frequency of 150 kHz were 13100/1800 V/T. The achieved sensitivity for pulse excitation (Ipeak-peak=900 mA, Irms=184 mA, duty 20%) was 2100 V/T. Noise power density for pulse excitation was 1.2 nTrms//spl radic/Hz@1 Hz, noise rms value from 10 mHz to 10 Hz was 3.3 nT. A perming error of 1 /spl mu/T was measured for a wide range of excitation currents.     

Boosting sensitivity of organic vapor detection with silicone block polyimide polymers

We demonstrate that silicone block polyimide polymers have an unusually high sensitivity to nonpolar organic vapors, including chlorinated organic solvent vapors. When 0.18-5.34-microm-thick films of silicone block polyimide polymers were deposited onto 10-MHz thickness shear mode (TSM) oscillators, these films were implemented to detect parts-per-billion concentrations of trichloroethylene (TCE) with a detection sensitivity of 0.5-23.5 Hz per 500 ppb of vapor. With a film thickness of 3.4 microm (91.5-kHz frequency shift upon film deposition), optimized for the minimal sensor noise of 0.04 Hz, the calculated detection limit of sensor response (S/N = 3) was 3 ppb of TCE. Detection limits for other chlorinated organic solvent vapors, such as perchloroethylene (PCE), cis-1,2-dichloroethylene (DCE), trans-1,2-DCE, 1,1-DCE, and vinyl chloride (VC) were 0.6, 6, 6, 11, and 13 ppb, respectively. Assuming only the mass-loading response when deposited onto the TSM devices, silicone block polyimide polymers have partition coefficients of over 200 000 to parts-per-billion concentrations of TCE that make them at least 100 times more sensitive than other known polymers for TCE detection. We observed that unlike conventional polyimides, water sensitivity of the new hybrid polyimides is suppressed because of the silicone soft block. Water sensitivity is comparable with the sensor response to nonpolar organic vapors. The high sensitivity and long-term stability of these sensor materials make them attractive for ultrasensitive practical sensors.     

A universal sensor for mercury (Hg, Hg(I), Hg(II)) based on silver nanoparticle-embedded polymer thin film

Detection of mercury at concentration levels down to parts-per-billion is a problem of fundamental and practical interest due to the high toxicity of the metal and its role in environmental pollution. The extensive research in this area has been focused primarily on specific sensing of mercuric (Hg(2+)) ion. As mercury exists in the oxidation states, +2, +1 and 0 all of which are highly toxic, a universal sensor covering all the three while ensuring high sensitivity, selectivity, and linearity of response, and facilitating in situ as well as ex situ deployment, would be very valuable. Silver nanoparticle-embedded poly(vinyl alcohol) (Ag-PVA) thin film fabricated through a facile protocol is shown to be a fast, efficient and selective sensor for Hg(2+), Hg(2)(2+) and Hg in aqueous medium with a detection limit of 1 ppb. The sensor response is linear in the 10 ppb to 1 ppm concentration regime. A unique characteristic of the thin film based sensor is the blue shift occurring concomitantly with the decrease in the surface plasmon resonance absorption upon interaction with mercury, making the sensing highly selective. Unlike the majority of known sensors that work only in situ, the thin film sensor can be used ex situ as well. Examination of the thin film using microscopy and spectroscopy through the sensing process provides detailed insight into the sensing event.     

Laser remote sensing of atmospheric ammonia using a CO2 lidar system

A CO2 differential-absorption lidar system has been used for the remote sensing of ammonia in the atmosphere. For CO2 lidar returns backscattered from topographic targets at ranges up to 2.7 km, the path-averaged sensitivity of the DIAL system was 5 ppb of NH3 . Concentrations of atmospheric ammonia were found to vary during the day from undetectable levels (<5 ppb) to as high as 20 ppb, depending on temperature and humidity conditions.     

Detection of nitrogen dioxide by cavity attenuated phase shift spectroscopy

We present initial results obtained from an optical absorption sensor for the monitoring of ambient atmospheric nitrogen dioxide concentrations (0-200 ppb). This sensor utilizes cavity attenuated phase shift spectroscopy, a technology related to cavity ringdown spectroscopy. A modulated broadband incoherent light source (a 430-nm LED) is coupled to an optically resonant cavity formed by two high-reflectivity mirrors. The presence of NO(2) in the cell causes a phase shift in the signal received by a photodetector that is proportional to the NO(2) concentration. The sensor, which employed a 0.5-m cell, was shown to have a sensitivity of 0.3 ppb in the photon (shot) noise limit. Improvements in the optical coupling of the LED to the resonant cavity would allow the sensor to reach this limit with integration times of 10 s or less (corresponding to a noise equivalent absorption coefficient of <1 x 10(-8) cm(-1) Hz(-1/2)). Over a 2-day-long period of ambient atmospheric monitoring, a comparison of the sensor with an extremely accurate and precise tunable diode laser-based absorption spectrometer showed that the CAPS-based instrument was able to reliably and quantitatively measure both large and small fluctuations in the ambient nitrogen dioxide concentration.     

Polymer nanocomposite nanomechanical cantilever sensors: material characterization, device development and application in explosive vapour detection

This paper reports an optimized and highly sensitive piezoresistive SU-8 nanocomposite microcantilever sensor and its application for detection of explosives in vapour phase. The optimization has been in improving its electrical, mechanical and transduction characteristics. We have achieved a better dispersion of carbon black (CB) in the SU-8/CB nanocomposite piezoresistor and arrived at an optimal range of 8-9 vol% CB concentration by performing a systematic mechanical and electrical characterization of polymer nanocomposites. Mechanical characterization of SU-8/CB nanocomposite thin films was performed using the nanoindentation technique with an appropriate substrate effect analysis. Piezoresistive microcantilevers having an optimum carbon black concentration were fabricated using a design aimed at surface stress measurements with reduced fabrication process complexity. The optimal range of 8-9 vol% CB concentration has resulted in an improved sensitivity, low device variability and low noise level. The resonant frequency and spring constant of the microcantilever were found to be 22 kHz and 0.4 N m(-1) respectively. The devices exhibited a surface stress sensitivity of 7.6 ppm (mN m(-1))(-1) and the noise characterization results support their suitability for biochemical sensing applications. This paper also reports the ability of the sensor in detecting TNT vapour concentration down to less than six parts per billion with a sensitivity of 1 mV/ppb.     

Chemical vapor detection using a capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducer

Distributed sensing of gas-phase chemicals using highly sensitive and inexpensive sensors is of great interest for many defense and consumer applications. In this paper we present ppb-level detection of dimethyl methylphosphonate (DMMP), a common simulant for sarin gas, with a ppt-level resolution using an improved capacitive micromachined ultrasonic transducer (CMUT) as a resonant chemical sensor. The improved CMUT operates at a higher resonant frequency of 47.7 MHz and offers an improved mass sensitivity of 48.8 zg/Hz/μm(2) by a factor of 2.7 compared to the previous CMUT sensors developed. A low-noise oscillator using the CMUT resonant sensor as the frequency-selective device was developed for real-time sensing, which exhibits an Allan deviation of 1.65 Hz (3σ) in the presence of a gas flow; this translates into a mass resolution of 80.5 zg/μm(2). The CMUT resonant sensor is functionalized with a 50-nm thick DKAP polymer developed at Sandia National Laboratory for dimethyl methylphosphonate (DMMP) detection. To demonstrate ppb-level detection of the improved chemical sensor system, the sensor performance was tested at a certified lab (MIT Lincoln Laboratory), which is equipped with an experimental chemical setup that reliably and accurately delivers a wide range of low concentrations down to 10 ppb. We report a high volume sensitivity of 34.5 ± 0.79 pptv/Hz to DMMP and a good selectivity of the polymer to DMMP with respect to dodecane and 1-octanol.     

Cavity ringdown spectroscopic detection of nitric oxide with a continuous-wave quantum-cascade laser

A spectroscopic gas sensor for nitric oxide (NO) detection based on a cavity ringdown technique was designed and evaluated. A cw quantum-cascade distributed-feedback laser operating at 5.2 mum was used as a tunable single-frequency light source. Both laser-frequency tuning and abrupt interruptions of the laser radiation were performed through manipulation of the laser current. A single ringdown event sensitivity to absorption of 2.2 x 10(-8) cm(-1) was achieved. Measurements of parts per billion (ppb) NO concentrations in N(2) with a 0.7-ppb standard error for a data collection time of 8 s have been performed. Future improvements are discussed that would allow quantification of NO in human breath.     

A Fluxgate Magnetic Sensor: From PCB to Micro-Integrated Technology

In this paper, a double-axis micro Fluxgate magnetic sensor is presented. The device represents an evolution of a PCB dual axis sensor previously realized. In the PCB version the experimental results exhibit excellent agreement with the simulations performed using a tool based on the finite element method. Using the same design approach a version of double-axis Fluxgate structure is here proposed to be realized in IC technology. The accurate study of the magnetic field distribution allows a 75% area saving for the IC version with respect to a direct scaling of the PCB version. Imposing an external magnetic field of about 60 muT, the simulated differential output voltage of the micro-integrated Fluxgate sensor achieves a peak value of 1 mV with 5 mA sinusoidal excitation current peak at 100 kHz. The integrated microstructure shows a linearity error of about 1.15% of the full scale, in the range of plusmn50 muT, with a sensitivity of about 0.45 mV/muT     

Conductive polymer films as ultrasensitive chemical sensors for hydrazine and monomethylhydrazine vapor

Thin films of the electrically conductive polymer poly(3-hexylthiophene) were investigated as ultrasensitive chemical sensors for hydrazine and monomethylhydrazine vapor. The threshold limit value for these highly toxic species, which are used extensively as rocket fuels, has recently been lowered to 10 ppb for 8-h exposure, necessitating the development of instrumentation with improved sensitivity. The present study describes the fabrication, calibration, and testing of simple, rugged, polymer-based sensors for detection of hydrazines in both ambient and vacuum environments. For reasonable choices of film thickness, initial resistance, and integration time, it is demonstrated that concentrations in the 0.1-100 ppb range can be monitored with an accuracy of ±20%. The sensor can be utilized for both dosimetric and real-time detection. Reproducible fabrication was achieved using standard spin-coating techniques. The polymer sensors exhibit good specificity to hydrazines in the presence of NH(3), amines, and ambient H(2)O and have a shelf-life of several years when stored in cold, dry conditions.     

Analysis and validation of thermal and packaging effects of a piezoresistive pressure sensor

Abstract

In this study, a packaged silicon base piezoresistive pressure sensor with thermal stress buffer is designed, fabricated, and studied. A finite element method (FEM) is adopted for designing and optimizing the sensor performance. Thermal and pressure loading on the sensor is applied to make a comparison between experimental and simulation results. Furthermore, a method that transforms simulation stress data into output voltage is proposed in this study, and the results indicate that the experimental result coincides with the simulation data. In order to achieve better sensor performance, a parametric analysis is performed to evaluate the system sensitivity, as well as thermal and packaging effects of the pressure sensor. The design parameters of the pressure sensor include membrane size, sensor chip size, glass thickness, adhesive layer thickness, PCB thickness/material, etc. The findings show that proper selection of the sensor structure and material not only enhances the sensor sensitivity but also reduces the thermal effects as well as the packaging influence.     

Magnetic nanoparticle-enhanced biosensor based on grating-coupled surface plasmon resonance

A highly sensitive surface plasmon resonance (SPR) biosensor employing magnetic nanoparticle (MNP) assays is presented. In the reported approach, MNPs simultaneously served as "vehicles" for rapid delivery of target analyte from a sample to the sensor surface and as labels increasing the measured refractive index changes that are associated with the binding of target analyte. An optical setup based on grating-coupled surface plasmon resonance (GC-SPR) was used with a magnetic field gradient applied through the sensor chip for manipulating with MNPs on its surface. Iron oxide MNPs and a sensor surface with metallic diffraction grating were modified with antibodies that specifically recognize different epitopes of the analyte of interest. The sensitivity of the biosensor was investigated as a function of mass transport of the analyte to the sensor surface driven by diffusion (free analyte) or by the magnetic field gradient (analyte bound to MNPs). Immunoassay-based detection of β human chorionic gonadotropin (βhCG) was implemented to evaluate the sensitivity of the MNP-enhanced GC-SPR biosensor scheme. The results reveal that the sensitivity of βhCG detection was improved by 4 orders of magnitude compared with the regular SPR sensor with direct detection format, and a limit of detection below pM was achieved.     

Chemosensory rhodamine-immobilized mesoporous silica material for extracting mercury ion in water with improved sensitivity

Mesoporous silica material, SBA-15, is an excellent support for constructing fluorescent surface sensor. In this paper, we reported a three-step surface reaction involved strategy to construct efficient fluorescent surface sensor for mercury ion by clicking rhodamine fluoroionophores onto APES-functionalized SBA-15, which is fully characterized by IR spectra, TGA analysis, elemental analysis, nitrogen adsorption experiment and TEM. Our experimental results indicated that such a strategy exhibits an obviously higher loading efficiency within SBA-15 than a previously reported strategy. The Hg²⁺ extracting efficiency for SBAIR was found to be enhanced (ca. 89%). In addition to the high selectivity, the current chemosensor shows improved sensitivity and can respond to Hg²⁺ as low as ppb level (1.0 × 10⁻⁸ M, 2 ppb) in water.     

Development and analysis of a PCB vector 2-D magnetic field sensor system for electronic compasses

A high-sensitivity vector two-dimensional (2-D) magnetic sensor system for low magnetic field measurements has been realized and tested. The system, made in PCB technology, consists of a double-axis Fluxgate magnetic sensor and the readout electronic circuitry, based on second-harmonic detection. The amorphous magnetic materials Vitrovac 6025X (25 /spl mu/m thick) and Vitrovac 6025Z (20 /spl mu/m thick) were used as the ferromagnetic core of the sensor. By applying a sinusoidal excitation current having a 450-mA peak at 10 kHz with Vitrovac 6025Z, the measured magnetic sensitivity was about 1.25 mV//spl mu/T. This value seems to be adequate for the Earth's magnetic field detection (/spl plusmn/60 /spl mu/T). The full-scale linearity error was about 1.5%. By using the thicker Vitrovac 6025X and a sinusoidal excitation current having a 600-mA peak at 10 kHz, a maximum sensitivity of approximately 1.68 mV//spl mu/T with a linearity error of about 1.55% full scale in the range of /spl plusmn/60 /spl mu/T were measured. Due to the use of commercially available ferromagnetic materials, the vector 2-D magnetic sensor system presented is characterized by a very simple fabrication process, thus allowing low-cost devices to be designed.     

A novel surface plasmon resonance immunosensor for 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) based on indirect competitive immunoreaction: a promising approach for on-site landmine detection

A surface plasmon resonance (SPR) immunosensor for the determination of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) has been developed based on the principle of indirect competitive immunoreaction. 2,4,6-trinitrophenol-bovine serum albumin (TNP-BSA) conjugate was immobilized onto a SPR gold chip by means of simple physical adsorption. Binding of anti-TNP antibody with TNP-BSA conjugate was detected based on an increase in resonance angle due to antigen-antibody interaction. Preincubation of anti-TNP antibody with TNT suppresses its interaction with immobilized TNP-BSA conjugate, which leads to a decrease in resonance angle shift. Following the dependence of the resonance angle shift, concentration of TNT was detected. Pepsin solution was used for the regeneration of the sensing surface. The response time for TNT measurement is about 22 min. The immunosensor showed excellent sensitivity to TNT in a wide concentration range from 60 ppt to 1000 ppb with good selectivity, stability, and reproducibility. The proposed system is promising for future application for the on-site detection of landmines.