Nanocrystalline In2O3–SnO2 thick films for low-temperature hydrogen sulfide detection

Abstract Nanocrystalline In 2 O 3 –SnO 2 thick films were fabricated using the screen-printing technique and their responses toward low concentrations of H 2 S in air (2–150 ppm) were tested at 28–150 °C. The amount of In 2 O 3 -loading was varied from 0 to 9 wt.% of SnO 2 and superb sensing performance was observed for the sensor loaded with 7 wt.% In 2 O 3 , which might be attributed to the decreased crystallite size as well as porous microstructure caused by the addition of In 2 O 3 to SnO 2 without structural modification. The interfacial barriers between In 2 O 3 and SnO 2 might be another major factor. Typically, the response of 7 wt.% In 2 O 3 -loaded SnO 2 sensor toward 100 ppm of H 2 S was 1481 at room temperature and 1921 at optimal operating temperature (40 °C) respectively, and showed fast and recoverable response with good reproducibility when operated at 70 °C, which are highly attractive for the practical application in low-temperature H 2 S detection.

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