Characterization of AgInSbTe-SiO₂ Nanocomposite Thin Film for Hydrogen Gas Sensor Applications

Abstract

Hydrogen (H 2 ) sensing property of AgInSbTe (AIST)-SiO 2 nanocomposite thin film prepared by target-attachment sputtering method was investigated in this work. The sample subjected to a 400°C-annealing for 90 sec exhibits a significant sensitivity (58.9 %) and short response time (75 sec) upon the exposure to an ambient containing 200 ppm H 2 at 75°C. The gas sensing capability is ascribed to the presence of antimony oxides, e.g., Sb 2 O 3 and Sb 2 O 5 , in nanocomposite layer which provide the charge carriers for sensing reactions. Moreover, the high specific-surface-area (SSA) feature of AIST nanocrystals in nanocomoposite layer provided numerous sites for reduction/oxidation reactions and thus a good H 2 gas sensing property can be achieved.