Periodically porous top electrodes on vertical nanowire arrays for highly sensitive gas detection.

Nanowires of various materials and configurations have been shown to be highly effective in the detection of chemical and biological species. In this paper, we report a novel, nanosphere-enabled approach to fabricating highly sensitive gas sensors based on ordered arrays of vertically aligned silicon nanowires topped with a periodically porous top electrode. The vertical array configuration helps to greatly increase the sensitivity of the sensor while the pores in the top electrode layer significantly improve sensing response times by allowing analyte gases to pass through freely. Herein, we show highly sensitive detection to both nitrogen dioxide (NO(2)) and ammonia (NH(3)) in humidified air. NO(2) detection down to 10 parts per billion (ppb) is demonstrated and an order-of-magnitude improvement in sensor response time is shown in the detection of NH(3).

Vapor detection performance of vertically aligned, ordered arrays of silicon nanowires with a porous electrode.

Vertically aligned, ordered arrays of silicon nanowires capped with a porous top electrode are used to detect gas phase ammonia and nitrogen dioxide in humidified air. The sensors had very fast response times and large signal-to-noise ratios. Calibration curves were created using both an initial slope method and a fixed-time point method. The initial-slope method had a power law dependence that correlates well with concentration, demonstrating a viable alternative for eventual quantitative vapor detection and enabling shorter sampling and regeneration times.

Assembling nanoparticle catalysts with nanospheres for periodic carbon nanotube structure growth.

We have developed a novel method to grow carbon nanotubes in a periodic structure using a simple one-step self-assembly process. In this approach, monodispersed nanospheres are utilized to assemble smaller nanoparticle catalysts into an ordered periodic pattern. Using this process, we have grown carbon nanotube bundles into a honeycomb structure. The proposed method eliminates the need for lithography and material deposition, greatly reducing the fabrication complexity and cost.