Work

Investigation of the gas-sensing performance of CuO sensors functionalized with different stabilized Au nanoparticles

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: In this work, which was presented at the Eurosensors 2024 conference (Maier et al., 2024a), we present the development of chemoresistive nanosensors based on ultrathin CuO/Cu 2 O films, fabricated through a two-step process involving thermal evaporation and subsequent oxidation on Si 3 N 4 -based micro-hotplate chips. The semiconducting metal oxide (SMOX) gas sensors are tested against various target gases like carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), and a mixture of hydrocarbons (HC Mix ). The CuO/Cu 2 O films are functionalized with sodium citrate and also with synthesized Au nanoparticles (Au NPs), which are stabilized with different types of ligands, namely, α -methoxypoly(ethylene glycol)- ω -(11-mercaptoundecanoate) (PEG–MUA), 3-mercaptopropionic acid (MPA), and citrate. While the Au NPs clearly increase the sensor response, in particular for CO 2 and HC Mix , we have figured out that the ligands have a significant impact on the sensor performance. In order to gain further insight into the influence of the different ligands on the sensing performance, the surface was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and the composition was determined by grazing incidence X-ray diffraction (GIXRD) measurement.

Source: Journal of sensors and sensor systems

DOI: 10.5194/jsss-14-55-2025

Authors: Christian Maier, Larissa Egger, Anton Köck, Sören Becker, Jan Steffen Niehaus, Klaus Reichmann

Institutions: Materials Center Leoben (Austria), Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, Graz University of Technology

Language: English

Topic: Gas Sensing Nanomaterials and Sensors

Subfield: Electrical and Electronic Engineering

Field: Engineering

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $679

Funder: Bundesministerium für Klimaschutz, Umwelt, Energie, Mobilität, Innovation und Technologie