Light enhanced room temperature resistive NO2 sensor based on a gold-loaded organic-inorganic hybrid perovskite incorporating tin dioxide

Development of Pd/In2O3 hybrid nanoclusters to optimize ethanol vapor sensing

In this study, we successfully synthesize palladium-decorated indium trioxide (Pd/In2O3) hybrid nanoclusters (NCs) using an advanced dual-target cluster beam deposition (CBD) method, a significant stride in developing high-performance ethanol sensors. The prepared Pd/In2O3 hybrid NCs exhibit exceptional sensitivity, stability, and selectivity to low concentrations of ethanol vapor, with a maximum response value of 101.2 at an optimal operating temperature of 260 °C for 6 at% Pd loading. The dynamic response of the Pd/In2O3-based sensor shows an increase in response with increasing ethanol vapor concentrations within the range of 50 to 1000 ppm. The limit of detection is as low as 24 ppb. The sensor exhibits a high sensitivity of 28.24 ppm-1/2, with response and recovery times of 2.7 and 4.4 seconds, respectively, for 100 ppm ethanol vapor. Additionally, the sensor demonstrates excellent repeatability and stability, with only a minor decrease in response observed over 30 days and notable selectivity for ethanol compared to other common volatile organic compounds. The study highlights the potential of Pd/In2O3 NCs as promising materials for ethanol gas sensors, leveraging the unique capabilities of CBD for controlled synthesis and the catalytic properties of Pd for enhanced gas-sensing performance.

High-Performance Optoelectronic Gas Sensing Based on All-Inorganic Mixed-Halide Perovskite Nanocrystals with Halide Engineering

Gas sensors are of great interest to portable and miniaturized sensing technologies with applications ranging from air quality monitoring to explosive detection and medical diagnostics, but the existing chemiresistive NO2 sensors still suffer from issues such as poor sensitivity, high operating temperature, and slow recovery. Herein, a high-performance NO2 sensors based on all-inorganic perovskite nanocrystals (PNCs) is reported, achieving room temperature operation with ultra-fast response and recovery time. After tailoring the halide composition, superior sensitivity of ≈67 at 8 ppm NO2 is obtained in CsPbI2 Br PNC sensors with a detection level down to 2 ppb, which outperforms other nanomaterial-based NO2 sensors. Furthermore, the remarkable optoelectronic properties of such PNCs enable dual-mode operation, i.e., chemiresistive and chemioptical sensing, presenting a new and versatile platform for advancing high-performance, point-of-care NO2 detection technologies.

Confinement of 1D Chain and 2D Layered CuI Modules in K-INA-R Frameworks via Coordination Assembly: Structure Regulation and Semiconductivity Tuning

Herein, we present a new series of CuI-based hybrid materials with tunable structures and semiconducting properties. The CuI inorganic modules can be tailored into a one-dimensional (1D) chain and two-dimensional (2D) layer and confined/stabilized in coordination frameworks of potassium isonicotinic acid (HINA) and its derivatives (HINA-R, R = OH, NO2, and COOH). The resulting CuI-based hybrid materials exhibit interesting semiconducting behaviors associated with the dimensionality of the inorganic module; for instance, the structures containing the 2D-CuI module demonstrate significantly enhanced photoconductivity with a maximum increase of five orders of magnitude compared to that of the structures containing the 1D-CuI module. They also represent the first CuI-bearing hybrid chemiresistive gas sensors for NO2 with boosted sensing performance and sensitivity at multiple orders of magnitude over that of the pristine CuI. Particularly, the sensing ability of CuI-K-INA containing both 1D- and 2D-CuI modules is comparable to those of the best NO2 chemiresistors reported thus far.

Light Activation of Nanocrystalline Metal Oxides for Gas Sensing: Principles, Achievements, Challenges

The review deals with issues related to the principle of operation of resistive semiconductor gas sensors and the use of light activation instead of thermal heating when detecting gases. Information on the photoelectric and optical properties of nanocrystalline oxides SnO2, ZnO, In2O3, and WO3, which are the most widely used sensitive materials for semiconductor gas sensors, is presented. The activation of the gas sensitivity of semiconductor materials by both UV and visible light is considered. When activated by UV light, the typical approaches for creating materials are (i) the use of individual metal oxides, (ii) chemical modification with nanoparticles of noble metals and their oxides, (iii) and the creation of nanocomposite materials based on metal oxides. In the case of visible light activation, the approaches used to enhance the photo- and gas sensitivity of wide-gap metal oxides are (i) doping; (ii) spectral sensitization using dyes, narrow-gap semiconductor particles, and quantum dots; and (iii) addition of plasmon nanoparticles. Next, approaches to the description of the mechanism of the sensor response of semiconductor sensors under the action of light are considered.

Monitoring of reaction kinetics and determination of trace water in hydrophobic organic solvents by a smartphone-based ratiometric fluorescence device

A smartphone-based ratiometric fluorescence device was designed to monitor the reaction kinetic process under vigorous mixing conditions, demonstrated by the hydrolysis of Cs₄PbBr₆ nanocrystals (NCs). In the presence of trace water, part of Cs₄PbBr₆ NCs (non-fluorescent) was converted to CsPbBr₃ NCs (strong fluorescent). Using anthracene as the reference fluorophore, the brightness ratio of the green (from CsPbBr₃ NCs) to blue (from anthracene) components in the fluorescence image which was recorded in situ by the smartphone camera was measured as the signal for kinetic analysis. It was shown that the water-triggered conversion reaction from Cs₄PbBr₆ NCs to CsPbBr₃ NCs follows the pseudo-second-order kinetic model in the early rapid hydrolysis stage (up to 4 min). With increasing water content, the hydrolysis of Cs₄PbBr₆ NCs is promoted to yield more CsPbBr₃ NCs, which was used to determine trace water in n-hexane, dichloromethane, and toluene with detection limits of 0.031, 0.043, and 0.057 μL mL^-1, respectively. The device offers the advantages of portability and low cost for rapid field determination of trace water in hydrophobic organic solvents. Graphical abstract.

Two-dimensional MoSe2 nanosheets via liquid-phase exfoliation for high-performance room temperature NO2 gas sensors

Molybdenum selenide (MoSe₂) has drawn significant interest due to its typical semiconductor properties. MoSe₂ is a relatively novel material in the field of gas sensors especially at room temperature. Herein, we utilize a facile and efficient synthetic method of liquid-phase exfoliation to exfoliate bulk MoSe₂ into nanosheets. Anhydrous ethanol is used as dispersant, so the low boiling point makes it easy to be removed from MoSe₂ nanosheets, which does not affect the subsequent sensing performance. The exfoliated few-layered MoSe₂ nanosheets shows significantly enhanced NO₂ gas response (1500% to 10 ppm NO₂ which is 18 times greater than pristine bulk MoSe₂), a low detection concentration (50 ppb), an outstanding repeatability, a remarkable selectivity, and a reliable long-term device durability (more than 60 d) at room temperature (25 °C). The reason of the significant improvement in gas sensing performance can be attributed mainly to the higher surface-to-volume ratio of exfoliated MoSe₂ nanosheets. It promotes the adsorption of gas molecules on the surface of the material, thereby facilitating the charge transfer process. The superior performance of this gas sensor makes MoSe₂ nanosheets a potential candidate for room temperature NO₂ detection.

Quasi Similar Routes of NO2 and NO Sensing by Nanocrystalline WO3: Evidence by In Situ DRIFT Spectroscopy

Tungsten oxide is a renowned material for resistive type gas sensors with high sensitivity to nitrogen oxides. Most studies have been focused on sensing applications of WO₃ for the detection of NO₂ and a sensing mechanism has been established. However, less is known about NO sensing routes. There is disagreement on whether NO is detected as an oxidizing or reducing gas, due to the ambivalent redox behavior of nitric oxide. In this work, nanocrystalline WO₃ with different particle size was synthesized by aqueous deposition of tungstic acid and heat treatment. A high sensitivity to NO₂ and NO and low cross-sensitivities to interfering gases were established by DC-resistance measurements of WO₃ sensors. Both nitrogen oxides were detected as the oxidizing gases. Sensor signals increased with the decrease of WO₃ particle size and had similar dependence on temperature and humidity. By means of in situ infrared (DRIFT) spectroscopy similar interaction routes of NO₂ and NO with the surface of tungsten oxide were unveiled. Analysis of the effect of reaction conditions on sensor signals and infrared spectra led to the conclusion that the interaction of WO₃ surface with NO was independent of gas-phase oxidation to NO₂.

Porous ZnO Ultrathin Nanosheets with High Specific Surface Areas and Abundant Oxygen Vacancies for Acetylacetone Gas Sensing

In this study, porous ZnO ultrathin nanosheets with abundant surface oxygen vacancies were prepared by a hydrothermal technique followed by an annealing method using graphene oxide (GO) as a template. The high specific surface area of GO with ultrathin thickness provided an important template for the ZnO ultrathin nanosheets. The as-prepared porous ZnO ultrathin nanosheets exhibited superior acetylacetone sensing performance. The sensor response of the porous ZnO ultrathin nanosheets was 191.1 for 100 ppm acetylacetone, which was approximately 4 times higher than that of ZnO clusters (prepared without GO template) at 340 °C. The porous ZnO ultrathin nanosheets also exhibited excellent selectivity and operational stability. The excellent gas sensing performance of the porous ZnO ultrathin nanosheets was due to their high specific surface area (130.5 m²/g) and abundant surface oxygen vacancy.

Enhanced Hydrogen Detection in ppb-Level by Electrospun SnO₂-Loaded ZnO Nanofibers

High-performance hydrogen sensors are important in many industries to effectively address safety concerns related to the production, delivering, storage and use of H₂ gas. Herein, we present a highly sensitive hydrogen gas sensor based on SnO₂-loaded ZnO nanofibers (NFs). The xSnO₂-loaded (x = 0.05, 0.1 and 0.15) ZnO NFs were fabricated using an electrospinning technique followed by calcination at high temperature. Microscopic analyses demonstrated the formation of NFs with expected morphology and chemical composition. Hydrogen sensing studies were performed at various temperatures and the optimal working temperature was selected as 300 °C. The optimal gas sensor (0.1 SnO₂ loaded ZnO NFs) not only showed a high response to 50 ppb hydrogen gas, but also showed an excellent selectivity to hydrogen gas. The excellent performance of the gas sensor to hydrogen gas was mainly related to the formation of SnO₂-ZnO heterojunctions and the metallization effect of ZnO.