Fabrication and gas sensing property of honeycomb-like ZnO

We report the structural characterization and proposed formation mechanism of honeycomb-like ZnO conglomerations fabricated by direct precipitation method. X-ray diffraction （XRD）, energy-disperse X-ray spectrometry （EDS）, scanning electron microscopy （SEM） showed that the as-prepared ZnO calcined at 700 ℃ were micron sphere particles with honeycomb-like structure. In the UV-vis absorbing spectrum, it was observed that there is a new additional absorption band at 260 nm, and it was speculated that the absorption may be caused by defects on the surface and interface of honeycomb-like ZnO. The as-products showed high sensitivity and short response time to sulfured hydrogen gas. These results demonstrate that honeycomb-like ZnO conglomerations are very promising materials for fabricating H2S gas sensors.

Synthesis of Tin Oxide Through Thermal Decomposition of Sn_2(NH_4)_2(C_2O_4)_3 and Its Gas Sensing Property

Nanocrystalline tin oxide samples were prepared by using Sn2 （NH4 ）2 （C2O4）3 as the precursor. The thermal decompositions were respectively conducted at 250,450 and 650 ℃. TG-DTA, XRD, TEM, FTIR were used to characterize the samples. The indirect heating sensors by using these materials as sensitive bodies were fabricated on an alumina tube with Au electrodes and platinum wires. Sensing properties of these sensors were investigated. It was found that the tin oxide sample obtained by thermal decomposition at 450 ℃ has a higher sensitivity to C2H5OH and a higher selectivity to hexane and ammonia than those obtained via the conventional precipitate method and the working temperatures needed were greatly decreased.

Synthesis,Proton Conductivity and Humidity Sensing Property ofγ-Type Zirconium Hydrogen Phosphate,Zr(HPO_4)_2·2H_2O

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Sensing Property of Carbon Nanotube Yarn Embedded in Ethylene Vinyl Acetate (EVA) Elastomer

Carbon nanotube (CNT) has remarkable piezoresistive properties,which makes its extremely sensitive to the mechanical force. In this study,the CNT yarn with the strength of 90 MPa and the strain sensing gage factor of 1.75 was selected and embedded into the ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) elastomer as a sensing material.By measuring the electric resistance changing under the stretching,bending,longitudinally and transversely compressing of the CNT embedded EVA, the resistance changing curves and their linear correlations were obtained and analyzed. The result shows that the gage factor under the tensile test is the highest( 2.51),which is higher than the original value of CNT yarn (1.75). The gage factors of the CNT yarn embedded into EVA elastomer under bending and longitudinal and transverse compression are 2.29,1.55 and 0.79,respectively.

Synthesis，Proton Conductivity and High－Temperature Humidity Sensing Property of Zr（HPO_4）_2·H_2O and Its Aluminium－substituted Compositions

A series of aluminium-containing α-type hydrated zirconium hydrogen phosphates,Zr_(1-x)Alx (H_(1+x/2)PO_4 )_2 with x=0-0.06,were hydrothermally synthesized and characterizedby means of X-ray diffraction,differential thermal analysis and thermogravimetric analysis.The proton conductivity,1.2×10￣(-4) S·cm￣(-1)at 180℃ was found in Zr_(0.98)Al_(0.02)(H_(1.01)PO_4)_2·H_2O.Humidity-sensing measurements were carried out at 120℃ and 140℃ respectively.Even a limited substitution of Al for Zr can enhance both proton conductivity and humidity sensitivity.

Preparation of polythiophene/WO_3 organic-inorganic hybrids and their gas sensing properties for NO_2 detection at low temperature

Polythiophene/WO3（PTP/WO3）organic-inorganic hybrids were synthesized by an in situ chemical oxidative polymerization method,and char- acterized by X-ray diffraction（XRD）,transmission electron microscopy（TEM）and thermo-gravimetric analysis（TGA）.The Polythiophene/ WO3 hybrids have higher thermal stability than pure polythiophene,which is beneficial to potential application as chemical sensors.Gas sensing measurements demonstrate that the gas sensor based on the Polythiophene/WO3 hybrids has high response and good selectivity for de- tecting NO2 of ppm level at low temperature.Both the operating temperature and PTP contents have an influence on the response of PTP/WO3 hybrids to NO2.The 10 wt%PTP/WO3 hybrid showed the highest response at low operating temperature of 70-C.It is expected that the PTP/WO3 hybrids can be potentially used as gas sensor material for detecting the low concentration of NO2 at low temperature.

On the Radiative Properties of Ice Clouds:Light Scattering, Remote Sensing,and Radiation Parameterization

Presented is a review of the radiative properties of ice clouds from three perspectives： light scattering simulations, remote sensing applications, and broadband radiation parameterizations appropriate for numerical models. On the subject of light scattering simulations, several classical computational approaches are reviewed, including the conventional geometric-optics method and its improved forms, the finite-difference time domain technique, the pseudo-spectral time domain technique, the discrete dipole approximation method, and the T-matrix method, with specific applications to the computation of the singlescattering properties of individual ice crystals. The strengths and weaknesses associated with each approach are discussed.With reference to remote sensing, operational retrieval algorithms are reviewed for retrieving cloud optical depth and effective particle size based on solar or thermal infrared（IR） bands. To illustrate the performance of the current solar- and IR-based retrievals, two case studies are presented based on spaceborne observations. The need for a more realistic ice cloud optical model to obtain spectrally consistent retrievals is demonstrated. Furthermore, to complement ice cloud property studies based on passive radiometric measurements, the advantage of incorporating lidar and/or polarimetric measurements is discussed.The performance of ice cloud models based on the use of different ice habits to represent ice particles is illustrated by comparing model results with satellite observations. A summary is provided of a number of parameterization schemes for ice cloud radiative properties that were developed for application to broadband radiative transfer submodels within general circulation models（GCMs）. The availability of the single-scattering properties of complex ice habits has led to more accurate radiation parameterizations. In conclusion, the importance of using nonspherical ice particle models in GCM simulations for climate studies is proven.

Gas-sensing Properties of Bismuth Iron Molybdate Thin Films

The thin film gas sensors of bismuth iron molybdate were prepared by ion beam sputtering technique. The prototype gas sensors studied have high sensitivity and selectivity to reducing gases, such as ethanol vapor, show a long term stability of response under most operating conditions and insensitivity to atmospheric humidity, and respond quickly comparing to traditional sintered gas sensors. The crystallographic structure and phase composition of these thin films were investigated with XRD, XPS and SEM techniques.

X-Ray Radiation Sensing Properties of ZnS Thin Film:A Study on the Effect of Annealing

Chemically synthesized ZnS thin film is found to be a good x-ray radiation sensor. We report the effect of annealing on the x-ray radiation detection sensitivity of a ZnS thin film synthesized by a chemical bath deposition technique. The chemically synthesized ZnS films are annealed at 333, 363 and 393K for 1 h. Structural analyses show that the lattice defects in the films decrease with annealing. Further, the band gap is also found to decrease from 3.38 to 3.21 eV after annealing at 393K. Current-voltage characteristics of the films are studied under dark and x-ray irradiation conditions. Due to the decrease of lattice defects and band gap, the conductivity under dark conditions is found to increase from 2.06 × 10^-6 to 1.69 × 10^-5 S/em, while that under x-ray irradiation increases from 4.13 × 10^-5 to 5.28 ×10^-5 S/cm. On the other hand, the x-ray radiation detection sensitivity of the films is found to decrease with annealing. This decrease of detection sensitivity is attributed to the decrease of the band gap as well as some structural and surface morphological changes occurring after annealing.

Liquid Concentration Sensing Properties of Microfibers with a Nanoscale-Structured Film

A type of compact solution concentration sensor based on a microfiber with a nanoscale-structured film is proposed and demonstrated experimentally. Additional loss at different solution concentrations is calculated by means of the three-dimensional finite-difference time-domain （3D-FDTD） method. The microfiber is fabricated by using the flame-heated scanning technique. Nanoscale-structured film is coated on the microfiber surface, which is assembled as a sensing unit. The sensitivity of this kind of sensor increases with the decreasing diameters of the microfiber. When the diameter of the microfiber is 2 #m, a minimum concentration sensitivity of 1% （under 450s measuring time） is demonstrated in the experiment. Higher sensitivity can be attained when the solution concentration is higher. The sensing properties of this microfiber with the nanoscale-structured film may provide opportunities for new applications in optical sensing devices.

Dielectric Properties of Capacitive-Type Humidity Sensor Made under Different Pressures

Capacitive humidity sensors were made of nanometer barium titanate.The pellets were prepared under different pressures between 3920N to 7850N force.The capacitance changes in three orders of magnitude in the relative humidity range of 10%～98%,indicating high humidity sensitivity of the sensors.At a certain measuring frequency,the capacitance of the sensors increases as increasing of the preparation pressure,while the sensitivity of the sensors basically remains the same.The frequencies corresponding to the peaks of the dielectric loss of the sensors move to the higher frequency direction as increasing of the relative humidity.At a certain humidity,the frequencies corresponding to the peaks of the dielectric loss move to the higher frequency direction as increasing of the preparation pressure.

Tensile and Electro-Mechanical Properties of Carbon Nanotube Film Twisted Yarn with Adjustable Diameter

Carbon nanotube(CNT)yarns with adjustable diameters were manufactured by twisting CNT films with varied twists.Different from traditional CNT fibers,CNT yarns exhibited a larger diameter(423μm)and a higher tensile force(1988 cN).The results showed that CNT yarns with the twist angle of 35°exhibited the highest conductivity(886 S/cm)and the highest tensile strain(35%).

Nanocomposites Preparation and Its Application to Sensor

The nanocomposites of ZnO-SnO_2 and In_2O_3-SnO_2 were prepared by wet chemical co-precipitation method as a novel semiconductor gas sensing materials for the detection of environmentally toxic gases.Controlled preparation parameters were critical towards the grain size and crystallinity of the obtained nanocomposites.The results showed that these nanocomposites exhibited high sensitivity and selectivity for the detection of CO and NO_x,and the sensitivity depended on the composition of the composite,calcination temperature and operating temperature.The gas sensing properties of the sensors were further improved through incorporation of dopants and surface additives.The gas sensing mechanism was also discussed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopic (XPS) and temperature-programmed desorption (TPD) studies.

Soft template synthesis of high selectivity mesoporous SnO_2 gas sensors

Mesoporous SnO2 was synthesized using cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide （CTAB） as supermolecule-template by hydrothermal method followed by calcining under different temperature in air. X-ray diffraction analysis （XRD） and transmission electron microscopy （TEM） techniques were used to characterize the structure of mesoporous SnO2. The results indicated that the gas sensors prepared by using mesoporous SnO2 after calcination at 400 ℃ showed quick response and recovery to ethanol at 200 ℃. It was also found that the mesostructure SnO2 with small particle size had higher sensitivity and selectivity to C2HhOH than the SnO2 nanoparticles the particle size of which is 20 nm synthesized by sol-gel method.

Photoinduced Enhancement of Gas Response Behavior of Tetra(heptyloxy)phthalocyanine Thin Film

The response of a spin coated phthalocyanine film to 1ppm NO2 can be increased significantly by light. This may be ascribed to the irritation of phthalocyanine molecules. This irritation decreased the energy changes of the electron transfer between NO2 and phthalocyanine.

Plasmonic gold nanoshell induced spectral effects and refractive index sensing properties of excessively tilted fiber grating

We demonstrate a fiber refractive index（RI） sensor based on an excessively tilted fiber grating（ExTFG）immobilized by large-size plasmonic gold nanoshells（GNSs）. The GNSs are covalently linked on ExTFG surface.Experimental results demonstrate that both the intensity of the transverse magnetic（TM） and transverse electric（TE） modes of ExTFG are significantly modulated by the localized surface plasmon resonance（LSPR） of GNSs due to the wide-range absorption band. The wavelength RI sensitivities of the TM and TE modes in the low RI range of 1.333–1.379 are improved by ～25% and ～14% after GNSs immobilization, respectively, and the intensity RI sensitivities are ～599%/RIU and ～486%/RIU, respectively.

Filter paper-templated preparation of ZnO thin films and examination of their gas-sensing properties

ZnO thin films prepared by using quantitative filter paper as a template and Zn（CH3CO2）2.2H2O ethanol precursor solution were characterized by scanning electron microscopy （SEM） and X-ray diffraction （XRD）. The effects of sample calcination temperature, precursor concentration and filter paper types were studied, and the growth process was investigated by infra-red （IR） spectroscopy and thermogravimettic analysis/differential thermal analysis （TGA/DTA）. The results show that samples soaked in a 1.5 mol/L Zn（CH3 CO2）2.2H2O ethanol solution and calcined at 600 ℃ yield ZnO films of uniform particle size, approximately 30, 40 and 50 nm. for fast-, medium- and slow-speed filter papers, respectively. The formaldehyde gas sensing properties of the ZnO nanoparticles were tested, showing that the material prepared from fast-speed filter paper has a higher response to 120-205 ppm formaldehyde at 400 ℃ than that prepared from medium- or slow-sneed paper, which depends on the narticle size.

A vector hybrid triboelectric sensor(HTS)for motion identification via machine learning

Rapidly responding and cost-effective sensors played a crucial role in industrial detection.However,the lack of versatile strategies for identifying and classifying operating states on various practical behaviors has limited the rapid development of monitoring technology.This study developed a vector hybrid triboelectric sensor(HTS)with surface nanocrystalline containing triboelectric vibration and rotation units(triboelectric vibration unit(TVU),triboelectric rotation unit(TRU))capable of detecting the vibrational and rotary states of the device.The synchronous detection of two sensing signals can be achieved due to the hierarchical structure as the basic unit of the HTS,which contributed to reducing the volume and spatial distribution of the HTS.Based on the voltage/current/charge(U-I-Q)signal amplitudes and phase features generated by the TVU,the vibration frequency and orientation of the device can be identified by using a double-layer neural network(D-LNN),in which the accuracy reaches 96.5%and 95.5%respectively.Additionally,by combining logistic regression,D-LNN,and linear regression,the accuracy of the TRU for rotary classification exceeds 93.5%in practical application.In this study,the great potential application of the HTS combined with the machine learning methods was successfully explored and exhibited and it might speed up the development of industrial detection in the near future.

Mechanically exfoliated MoS_(2) nanosheets decorated with SnS_(2) nanoparticles for high-stability gas sensors at room temperature

Due to its unique physical,chemical and surface electronic properties,molybdenum disulfide(MoS_(2))nanosheets open up a new avenue for nitrogen dioxide(NO2)detection at room temperature.Nevertheless,the gas sensing properties of pure MoS_(2) nanosheets are inevitably degenerated by the adsorption of atmospheric oxygen,which results in weak stability for MoS_(2)-based gas sensors.Reducing surface defects and constructing heterojunctions may be effective strategies to improve the gas sensing properties of MoS_(2) nanosheets.In this work,we design a novel nanocomposite based on MoS_(2) nanosheets decorated with tin disulfide(SnS_(2))nanoparticles(MoS_(2)/SnS_(2))via combining the mechanical exfoliation method with the facile hydrothermal method.The experimental results indicate that,after surfaces decoration with SnS_(2) nanoparticles,the as-prepared gas sensor based on MoS_(2)/SnS_(2) nanocomposites exhibits reliable long-term stability with the maximum response value drift of less than 3%at room temperature.Moreover,the MoS_(2)/SnS_(2) sensor also possesses desirable gas sensing properties upon NO_(2) at room temperature,such as high sensitivity,rapid response/recovery speed(28 s/3 s,5×10^(-6) NO_(2)),satisfactory selectivity,favorable repeatability and reversibility.The improved gas sensing properties of MoS_(2)/SnS_(2) nanocomposites can be attributed to the unique electronic properties of MoS 2 nanosheets with the fewer layers structure and the competitive adsorption effect of SnS_(2) nanoparticles.This work elucidates that SnS_(2) nanoparticles serving as an effective antioxidative decoration can promote the stability of MoS_(2) nanosheets,providing a promising approach to achieve high-stability NO2 gas sensors at room temperature.

Growth-temperature-dependent optical and acetone detection properties of ZnO thin films

Zinc oxide （ZnO） thin films were prepared onto glass substrates at moderately low growth tempera- ture by two-stage spray pyrolysis technique. The effects of growth temperature on structural, optical and acetone detection properties were investigated with X-ray diffractometry, a UV-visible spectrophotometer, photoluminescence （PL） spectroscopy and a homemade gas sensor testing unit, respectively. All the films are polycrystalline with a hexagonal wurtzite phase and exhibit a preferential orientation along [002] direction. The film crystallinity is gradually enhanced with an increase in growth temperature. The optical measurements show that all the films are physically highly transparent with a transmittance greater than 82% in the visible range. The band gap of the film is observed to exhibit a slight red shift with an increasing growth temperature. The PL studies on the films show UV/violet PL band at - 395 nm. Among all the films investigated, the film deposited at 250℃ demonstrates a maximum sensitivity of 13% towards 20 ppm of acetone vapors at 300℃ operating temperature.