Single semiconducting zinc oxide nanowire based device for thermal and airflow sensing

This paper reports a technology for fabricating a novel nanostructure-based device comprised of a single semiconducting zinc oxide (ZnO) nanowire suspended between two micro Au electrodes for sensor applications. The electric characteristics of the device before and after processed by Pt deposition using focused ion beam microscope were comparatively studied. Furthermore, the potential applications by using the device for thermal and airflow sensing were also investigated. The temperature coefficient of resistance of the ZnO nanowire was estimated to be about -2.61 times 10^-3degC^-1. The airflow sensitivity of the device is about 3 kOmega/m/s. Compared with conventional sensors, this device takes advantages of high sensitivity and ultra-low power.