Electrical characterization of nanostructured Sn-doped ZnO gas sensors

Chemoresistive devices based on pure-Zinc Oxide (ZnO) and doped-ZnO nanostructures with tin as dopant were investigated. The nanostructured materials, prepared by a simple and fast microwave irradiation method, have been widely characterized by X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform InfraRed spectroscopy (FT-IR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS). The electrical and gas sensing properties, by measuring the resistance value and the electrical impedance, of pure and Sndoped ZnO nanoparticles were evaluated in the monitoring of reducing (CO) and oxidizing (NO<inf>2</inf>) gases. Results demonstrated that, using tin-doped nanoparticles, a simple and low cost sensor device with improved properties in the detection of low concentrations of CO and NO<inf>2</inf> can be developed. © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2015.