High Gain and Fast Detection of Warfare Agents Using Back-Gated Silicon-Nanowired MOSFETs

The top-down fabrication of doped p-type silicon-nanowired (NW) arrays and their application as gas detectors is presented. After surface functionalization with 3-(4-ethynylbenzyl)-1, 5, 7-trimethyl-3-azabicyclo [3.3.1] nonane-7-methanol molecules, the wires were subjected to an organophosphorous simulant, and both static and dynamic measurements were performed. A current gain of 4 × 10⁶ is obtained upon the detection of the subpart-per-million concentration of a nerve-agent simulant. This represents a four-decade improvement over previous demonstration based on nanoribbons, proving better sensing capabilities of NWs. Technology-computer-aided-design simulations before and after gas detection have been performed to gain insight into the physical mechanisms involved in the gas detection and to investigate the impact of the surface-to-volume ratio on sensor sensitivity.