Fabrication and Evaluation of Solution Processed Robust Gas Sensor of and#913; MoO3 Nanostructures for No2 Detection

Abstract

Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) is a hazardous air pollutant primarily emitted from vehicle exhaust, industrial processes, and power generation. Exposure to even trace levels of NO2 can lead to severe respiratory problems, cardiovascular diseases, and contributes to environmental issues such as acid rain and photochemical smog. Continuous monitoring and early detection of NO2 are therefore critical for public health and environmental protection. Graphene based sensors acquired significant attention for NO2 detection owing to its high surface area that can facilitate gas adsorption, and excellent electrical conductivity and mobility allowing for efficient charge transport. However, the absence of intrinsic band gap in graphene hinders the sensitivity. This moved the sensor researchers towards graphene analogous 2D transition metal chalcogenides (TMCs) (example; MoS2, WS2, etc.) owing to their intrinsic band gap, layered structure and low dimensional nanostructures (NSTs) that offer low temperature gas detection. However, the toxicity of the chalcogenides such as sulfur (S), selenium (Se), and tellurium (Te) creates concern of safety upon synthesis of material, fabrication of sensor, and handling. Also, the chalcogenides-based gas sensors suffer from degradation in performance upon real-time air-filled environment due to atmospheric oxygen that can oxidize it newline