Selective semiconductor sensors for reducing and oxidizing gases

The ever-increasing need for sensors capable of detecting and monitoring toxic and flammable gases is presented and the various techniques available are introduced. Semiconductor devices based on tin dioxide, which potentially have many desirable characteristics, are discussed in detail with particular reference to the work in Swansea which has focused on the problem of selectivity.     

Synthesis of ZnO tetrapods for flexible and transparent UV sensors

ZnO tetrapods (ZnO-Ts) were synthesized in a vertical flow reactor by gas phase oxidation of Zn vapor in an air atmosphere. The morphology of the product was varied from nearly spherical nanoparticles to ZnO-Ts, together with the partial pressure of Zn and reaction temperature. MgO introduced during synthesis, increased the band gap, the optical transparency in the visible range, and also changed the ZnO-T structure. Fabricated flexible transparent UV sensors showed a 45-fold current increase under UV irradiation with an intensity of 30 μW cm(-2) at a wavelength of 365 nm and response time of 0.9 s.     

Selective growth of ZnO nanorods for gas sensors using ink-jet printing and hydrothermal processes

Selective growth of ZnO nanorod arrays with well-defined areas was developed to fabricate the NO₂ gas sensor. The seed solution was ink-jet printed on the interdigitated electrodes. Then, vertically aligned ZnO nanorods were grown on the patterned seed layer by the hydrothermal approach. The influences of seed-solution properties and the ink-jet printing parameters on the printing performance and the morphology of the nanorods were studied. Round micropattern (diameter: 650 μm) of ZnO nanorod arrays is demonstrated. The dimensions and positions of the nanorod arrays can be controlled by changing the printed seed pattern. The effects of nanorod structure and nanorod size on the gas-sensing capability of ZnO nanorod gas sensors were demonstrated. Due to the high surface-to-volume ratios of the nanorod-array structure, the ZnO nanorod gas sensor can respond to 750 ppb NO₂ at 100 °C. The sensors without baking treatment exhibit the typical response of a p-type semiconductor. However, only the response of n-type semiconductor oxides was observed after the annealing treatment at 150 °C for 2 h.     

Retina-Inspired Carbon Nitride-Based Photonic Synapses for Selective Detection of UV Light

Photonic synapses combine sensing and processing in a single device, so they are promising candidates to emulate visual perception of a biological retina. However, photonic synapses with wavelength selectivity, which is a key property for visual perception, have not been developed so far. Herein, organic photonic synapses that selectively detect UV rays and process various optical stimuli are presented. The photonic synapses use carbon nitride (C₃N₄) as an UV-responsive floating-gate layer in transistor geometry. C₃N₄ nanodots dominantly absorb UV light; this trait is the basis of UV selectivity in these photonic synapses. The presented devices consume only 18.06 fJ per synaptic event, which is comparable to the energy consumption of biological synapses. Furthermore, in situ modulation of exposure to UV light is demonstrated by integrating the devices with UV transmittance modulators. These smart systems can be further developed to combine detection and dose-calculation to determine how and when to decrease UV transmittance for preventive health care.     

Selective Oxidation of Graphite on Diamond Films Induced by UV Exposure

A selective oxidation technique for diamond films based on the extended exposure to UV light in air at room temperature was developed and studied by Raman Spectroscopy and Scanning Electron Microscopy. The diamond films were synthesized by the combustion flame technique in open atmosphere by using an oxy-acetylene gas mixture as the carbon source. A 125 W UV lamp was used to irradiate the films in the wavelength range of 180–250 nm, from 2 to 10 days. The Raman spectrum from the as-deposited diamond films shows the typical band at 1333 cm^–1, characteristic of the sp ³diamond structure, with a certain nondiamond or graphite content. After UV irradiation, graphite was selectively oxidized and partially removed without oxidation of diamond, indicating that the strong reaction of ozone (O₃) and atomic oxygen (O·) produced by the UV irradiation oxidized the graphite, even at room temperature, without the need of an additional heating source. The oxidation of graphite was best observed after 2 days of UV treatment. A sensible improvement in the diamond film quality was obtained after 2 days of irradiation, as revealed by the sharpening of the corresponding Raman band.     

Study of self-assembly TiO_2 nanostructures and their applications in photo-degradation(catalysis) and photo-detection(UV sensors)

正A generalized and fundamental approach to molecular self-assembly synthesis of TiO_2 nanostructures is reported in this article.The formation mechanism of the nanostructures was proposed in detail.The products were characterized by X-ray diffraction,scanning electron microscopy,and transmis-     

Configurable electrodes for capacitive-type sensors and chemical sensors

This paper describes a novel design for capacitive sensors or chemical sensors, which features configurable interdigitated electrodes: The electrode spacing can be varied by means of switches on the CMOS chip. This new design allows for performing two capacitive measurements with one single-sensor capacitor so that the number of sensors required to acquire a certain amount of information can be significantly reduced. The use of the same sensor and the same polymer layer for two measurements at a different electrode periodicity provides a better signal quality for the difference signal since detrimental influences, such as humidity and sensor drift, are similar for both electrode configurations and are strongly correlated. Such high signal quality is required for, e.g., the successful recognition of n-octane in the presence of tenfold larger background signals of humidity or, in general, for the determination of low analyte concentrations in humid air. The baseline drift in the concentration predictions based on the differential signal from the two electrode configurations was an order of magnitude lower than that for uncorrelated signals produced by two separate interdigitated capacitors on the same chip. Since the number of required sensors is reduced and, owing to the differential readout of two electrode configurations, reference capacitors are no longer necessary, the overall chip size and/or the number of sensor chips and, consequently, costs can be considerably reduced.     

Selective potassium ion recognition by benzo-15-crown-5 fluoroionophore/gamma-cyclodextrin complex sensors in water

Three fluoroionophores Cn (n = 1, 3, 5), in which the crown ether unit and pyrenyl moiety are connected by a -(CH2)n- spacer, have been used to construct supramolecular Cn/gamma-cyclodextrin (gamma-CyD) complexes for alkali metal ion sensing in water. The Cn (n = 3, 5) are found to selectively form 2:1 complexes with K+ in the presence of gamma-CyD and exhibit the pyrene dimer emission in water. Equilibrium analysis of the C3/gamma-CyD complex reveals that the observed dimer emission arises from a 2:1:1 complex of C3 with K+ and gamma-CyD. In the absence of K+, the fluorescence lifetimes for the dimer species ((C3)2CyD and (C3)2(CyD)2) and the monomer species (C3CyD and C3(CyD)2) are 13-18 and 130-180 ns, respectively. Upon addition of 0.10 M KCI, a rising component corresponding to pyrene excimer formation is observed at the dimer emission region. For the C3/gamma-CyD complex, the apparent association constant for K+ of (3.8 +/- 1.3) x 10(9) M(-2) is only slightly affected by the presence of Na+. Although the C5/gamma-CyD complex shows high sensitivity for K+, the selectivity for K+ over Na+ is lower than that of the C3/gamma-CyD complex. In contrast, fluoroionophore C1 with the shortest methylene spacer exhibits no response for alkali metal cations in the presence of gamma-CyD. These results demonstrate that the response function of supramolecular Cn/gamma-CyD complexes is strongly affected by the methylene spacer length of Cn. The highest K+ selectivity is obtained for the C3/gamma-CyD complexes in water.     

Selective gold-nanoparticle-based "turn-on" fluorescent sensors for detection of mercury(II) in aqueous solution

A new gold-nanoparticle (AuNP)-based sensor for detecting Hg(II) ions in aqueous solution has been developed. Rhodamine B (RB) molecules that are highly fluorescent in bulk solution fluoresce weakly when they are adsorbed onto AuNP surfaces as a result of fluorescence resonance energy transfer and collision with AuNPs. In the presence of metal ions such as Hg(II), RB molecules are released from the AuNP surface and thus restore the florescence of RB. The modulation of the photoluminescence quenching efficiency of RB-AuNPs in the presence of Hg(II) ions can achieve a large turn-on fluorescence enhancement (400-fold) in aqueous solution, and the entire detection takes less than 10 min. We have improved the selectivity of the probe further by modifying the AuNP surfaces with thiol ligands (mercaptopropionic acid, mercaptosuccinic acid, and homocystine) and adding a chelating ligand (2,6-pyridinedicarboxylic acid) to the sample solutions. Under the optimum conditions, the selectivity of this system for Hg(II) over other metal ions in aqueous solutions is remarkably high (50-fold or more), and its LOD for Hg(II) in the matrix pond water is 2.0 ppb. Our approach demonstrated the feasibility of using the developed nanosensor for rapid determination of Hg(II) in aqueous environmental samples and in batteries.     

Suitability of surface acoustic wave oscillators fabricated using low temperature-grown AlN films on GaN/sapphire as UV sensors

Epitaxial AlN films were prepared on GaN/sapphire using a helicon sputtering system at the low temperature of 300 degrees C. Surface acoustic wave (SAW) devices fabricated on AlN/GaN/sapphire exhibited superior characteristics compared with those made on GaN/sapphire. An oscillator using an AlN/GaN/sapphirebased SAW device is presented. The oscillation frequency decreased when the device was illuminated by ultraviolet (UV) radiation, and the downshift of the oscillation frequency increased with the illuminating UV power density. The results showed that the AlN/GaN/sapphire-layered structure SAW oscillators are suitable for visible blind UV detection and opened up the feasibility of developing remote UV sensors for different ranges of wavelengths on the III-nitrides.     

Selective and sensitive fluorescent sensors for metal ions based on manipulation of side-chain compositions of poly(p-phenyleneethynylene)s

The syntheses and metal-responsive properties of poly(p-phenyleenethynylene)s with grafted new pseudo-crown-ether groups are reported. These polymers exhibit high sensitivities to alkali ions because of their collective optical properties, which are very sensitive to ion-induced conformational changes. The quenching of polymer fluorescence caused by the conformational changes is proportional to the ion concentration. The selectivity of the sensing materials toward Li(+) ions is significantly enhanced by controlling the size of the binding site via manipulation of the polymer side-chain compositions. The polymers are very stable for their six-month solid-state storage at room temperature.     

MEMS与磁传感器

微电子机械系统(MEMS)是21世纪一项革命性的新技术.其加工工艺是在硅微电子基础上发展起来的,本文介绍了MEMS的发展及两种微型磁传感器,微磁通门传感器和微磁阻传感器,简要阐述了它们的基本结构和敏感机理,从中可以看出微传感器已成为传感技术中有重要应用前景的组成部分.