title: An electrothermal carbon nanotube gas sensor.
abstract: We show both gas pressure and species sensing capabilities based on the electrothermal effect of a multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT). Upon exposure to gaseous environments, the resistance of a heated MWCNT is found to change following the conductive heat-transfer variances of gas molecules. To realize this mechanism, a suspended MWCNT is constructed by synthesis and assembly in localized chemical vapor deposition that is accomplished within seconds via real-time electrical feedback control. Vacuum pressure sensitivity and gas species differentiability are observed and analyzed. Such MWCNT electrothermal sensors are compact, fast and reversible in responses, and fully integratable with microelectronics.
authors.affiliation: Berkeley Sensor and Actuator Center, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of California at Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
authors.forename: Takeshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kawano
authors.forename: Heather C
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Chiamori
authors.forename: Marcel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Suter
authors.forename: Qin
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Brian D
authors.initials: BD
authors.lastname: Sosnowchik
authors.forename: Liwei
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Lin
mesh_terms: D004563:Electrochemistry; D004867:Equipment Design; D005740:Gases / Q000032:analysis*; D037742:Nanotubes, Carbon / Q000737:chemistry*; D011312:Pressure; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013816:Thermodynamics
chemical_list: D005740:Gases; D037742:Nanotubes, Carbon