Improved semiconducting CuO/CuFe2O4 nanostructured thin films for CO2 gas sensing

Audrey Chapelle (1) , Imane El Younsi (1) , Stefania Vitale (2, 3) , Yohan Thimont (1) , Thomas Nelis (2) , Lionel Presmanes (1) , Antoine Barnabé (1) , Philippe Tailhades (1)

1 CIRIMAT - Centre interuniversitaire de recherche et d'ingenierie des matériaux
2 UNIBE - Universität Bern / University of Bern
3 Unict - Università degli studi di Catania = University of Catania

Promising results on the behavior of CuO/CuFe2O4sputtered thin films as a sensing material under carbondioxide atmospheres are presented in this article. More specifically, we report the effects of preparationparameters and microstructure of the sensing layer on the response to CO2. FEG-SEM images and XPSmeasurements revealed the two-stacked layers rearrangement of samples after air annealing as a keyparameter in gas sensing test. The influence of the sensing layer thickness and the influence of Ag as anadditive in the film on the response are also reported. The best response was obtained at the optimaloperating temperature of 250◦C with a thin film deposited under low argon pressure and low target-to-substrate distance, reaching 40% towards 5000 ppm of CO2.

Mots clés: CO2; Sensor; Bi-layer; P–n junction; CuOCuFe2O4; Nanocomposite; Sputtering; Thin films

Domaines: Génie chimique

Audrey Chapelle, Imane El Younsi, Stefania Vitale, Yohan Thimont, Thomas Nelis, et al.. Improved semiconducting CuO/CuFe2O4 nanostructured thin films for CO2 gas sensing. Sensors and Actuators B: Chemical, 2014, vol. 204, pp. 407-413. ⟨10.1016/j.snb.2014.07.088⟩. ⟨hal-01170563⟩