A novel gas sensor design based on CH4/H2/H2O plasma etched ZnO thin films

A reactively sputtered ZnO thin film layer is employed as the gas-sensitive material in a novel gas sensor design with extended bordering areas of active catalyst to the metal oxide. The effect of the change in ohmic resistance of the ZnO thin film layer in the presence of different gases is used for gas measurements. A CH4/H2/H2O plasma etching process is established for the microstructuring of the ZnO to realize the novel sensor design. The sputter-deposited ZnO thin films are characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), surface profilometry, and X-ray diffractometry (XRD).