Modulation of Sn concentration in ZnO nanorod array: intensification on the conductivity and humidity sensing properties

• Published in: Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Electronics
• Main Author: Ismail A.S.; Mamat M.H.; Shameem Banu I.B.; Malek M.F.; Yusoff M.M.; Mohamed R.; Ahmad W.R.W.; Abdullah M.A.R.; Md. Sin N.D.; Suriani A.B.; Ahmad M.K.; Rusop M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Springer New York LLC 2018
• Online Access: https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85047178191&doi=10.1007%2fs10854-018-9314-7&partnerID=40&md5=3d74c7e9a8f0ec8c2db9d927193f6e88

Tin (Sn)-doped zinc oxide (ZnO) nanorod arrays (TZO) were synthesized onto aluminum-doped ZnO-coated glass substrate via a facile sonicated sol–gel immersion method for humidity sensor applications. These nanorod arrays were grown at different Sn concentrations ranging from 0.6 to 3 at.%. X-ray diffraction patterns showed that the deposited TZO arrays exhibited a wurtzite structure. The stress/strain condition of the ZnO film metamorphosed from tensile strain/compressive stress to compressive strain/tensile stress when the Sn concentrations increased. Results indicated that 1 at.% Sn doping of TZO, which has the lowest tensile stress of 0.14 GPa, generated the highest conductivity of 1.31 S cm−1. In addition, 1 at.% Sn doping of TZO possessed superior sensitivity to a humidity of 3.36. These results revealed that the optimum performance of a humidity-sensing device can be obtained mainly by controlling the amount of extrinsic element in a ZnO film. © 2018, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.