Synthesis and chemoresistive sensitivity to hydrogen of nanostructured CuO films

Abstract

Highly porous CuO films up to 1 μm thick consisting of vertically oriented nanowires ~ 50 nm in diameter were synthesized by copper evaporation in a vacuum arc discharge in an argon/oxygen atmosphere followed by deposition on heated substrates. The phase composition and polycrystalline nature of the films were confirmed by X-ray diffraction. On the example of gaseous hydrogen H2 at a sensor operating temperature of 300oC, sensory characteristics of CuO films were studied. The qualitative mechanism of the effect of gas on the electrical characteristics of the nanostructured CuO film is described. Keywords: copper oxide, vacuum arc, nanowires, gas sensor.