B. S. Kang

Hydrogen-selective sensing at room temperature with ZnO nanorods

The sensitivity for detecting hydrogen with multiple ZnO nanorods is found to be greatly enhanced by sputter-depositing clusters of Pd on the surface. The resulting structures show a change in room- temperature resistance upon exposure to hydrogen concentrations in N2 of 10–500ppm of approximately a factor of 5 larger than without Pd. Pd-coated ZnO nanorods detected hydrogen down to 2.6% at 10ppm and >4.2% at 500ppm H2 in N2 after a 10min exposure. There was no response at room temperature to O2. Approximately 95% of the initial ZnO conductance after exposure to hydrogen was recovered within 20s by exposing the nanorods to either air or pure O2. This rapid and easy recoverability make the Pd-coated nanorods suitable for practical applications in hydrogen-selective sensing at ppm levels at room temperature with <0.4mW power consumption.

Hydrogen sensing at room temperature with Pt-coated ZnO thin films and nanorods

A comparison is made of the sensitivities for detecting hydrogen with Pt-coated single ZnO nanorods and thin films of various thicknesses (20–350 nm). The Pt-coated single nanorods show a current response of approximately a factor of 3 larger at room temperature upon exposure to 500ppmH2 in N2 than the thin films of ZnO. The power consumption with both types of sensors can be very small (in the nW range) when using discontinuous coatings of Pt. Once the Pt coating becomes continuous, the current required to operate the sensors increases to the μW range. The optimum ZnO thin film thickness under our conditions was between 40–170 nm, with the hydrogen sensitivity falling off outside this range. The nanorod sensors show a slower recovery in air after hydrogen exposure than the thin films, but exhibit a faster response to hydrogen, consistent with the notion that the former adsorb relatively more hydrogen on their surface. Both ZnO thin and nanorods cannot detect oxygen.

GaN-based diodes and transistors for chemical, gas, biological and pressure sensing

An apparatus for testing of integrated circuits (ICs) has parallel plates arranged at a fixed distance from each other, each having a plurality of aligning bores, and a plurality of equally oriented contact elements made of resilient sheet material. The elements have a first straight end portion sitting in a bore of one of said plates and a second straight end portion sitting in an aligning bore of the other of said plates. A pressure member is used to move an IC toward the outer side of one of the plates and the first end portions of the contact elements, which first ends extend slightly beyond the outer side of one of the plates and form a pattern which corresponds to the pattern of contact points of the IC to be tested. The second end portions of the contact elements are adapted to be connected to a testing device, and the portion of the contact elements between said first and second end portions lie between the plates and are offset relative to the end portions and experience multiple deflections as axial pressure is exerted on the first end portions. The contact elements are formed out of a flat strip, and the center portion of each element is bent out of the plane defined by the strip.

Depletion-mode ZnO nanowire field-effect transistor

Single ZnO nanowire metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs) were fabricated using nanowires grown by site selective molecular-beam epitaxy. When measured in the dark at 25°C, he depletion-mode transistors exhibit good saturation behavior, a threshold voltage of ∼−3V, and a maximum transconductance of order 0.3mS∕mm. Under ultraviolet (366nm) illumination, the drain–source current increase by approximately a factor of 5 and the maximum transconductance is ∼5mS∕mm. The channel mobility is estimated to be ∼3cm2∕Vs, which is comparable to that reported for thin film ZnO enhancement mode MOSFETs, and the on∕off ratio was ∼25 in the dark and ∼125 under UV illumination.

Electrical transport properties of single ZnO nanorods

Single ZnO nanorods with diameters of ∼130nm were grown on Au-coated Al2O3 substrates by catalyst-driven molecular beam epitaxy. Individual nanorods were removed from the substrate and placed between Ohmic contact pads and the current–voltage characteristics measured as a function of temperature and gas ambient. In the temperature range from 25to150°C, the resistivity of nanorods treated in H2 at 400°C prior to measurement showed an activation energy of 0.089±0.02eV and was insensitive to the ambient used (C2H4,N2O,O2 or 10% H2 in N2). By sharp contrast, the conductivity of nanorods not treated in H2 was sensitive to trace concentrations of gases in the measurement ambient even at room temperature, demonstrating their potential as gas sensors.

The control of cell adhesion and viability by zinc oxide nanorods

The ability to control the behavior of cells that interact with implanted biomaterials is desirable for the success of implanted devices such as biosensors or drug delivery devices. There is a need to develop materials that can limit the adhesion and viability of cells on implanted biomaterials. In this study, we investigated the use of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanorods for modulating the adhesion and viability of NIH 3T3 fibroblasts, umbilical vein endothelial cells, and capillary endothelial cells. Cells adhered far less to ZnO nanorods than the corresponding ZnO flat substrate. The few cells that adhered to ZnO nanorods were rounded and not viable compared to the flat ZnO substrate. Cells were unable to assemble focal adhesions and stress fibers on nanorods. Scanning electron microscopy indicated that cells were not able to assemble lamellipodia on nanorods. Time-lapse imaging revealed that cells that initially adhered to nanorods were not able to spread. This suggests that it is the lack of initial spreading, rather than long-term exposure to ZnO that causes cell death. We conclude that ZnO nanorods are potentially useful as an adhesion-resistant biomaterial capable of reducing viability in anchorage-dependent cells.

pH measurements with single ZnO nanorods integrated with a microchannel

Single ZnO nanorods with Ohmic contacts at either end exhibit large changes in current upon exposing the surface region to polar liquids introduced through an integrated microchannel. The polar nature of the electrolyte introduced led to a change of surface charges on the nanorod, producing a change in surface potential at the semiconductor∕liquid interface. The nanorods exhibit a linear change in conductance between pH 2 and 12 of 8.5nS∕pH in the dark and 20nS∕pH when illuminated with ultraviolet (365nm) light. The nanorods show stable operation with a resolution of ∼0.1pH over the entire pH range. The results indicate that ZnO nanorods may have applications in integrated chemical, gas, and fluid monitoring sensors.

Enzymatic glucose detection using ZnO nanorods on the gate region of AlGaN∕GaN high electron mobility transistors

ZnO nanorod-gated AlGaN∕GaN high electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) are demonstrated for the detection of glucose. A ZnO nanorod array was selectively grown on the gate area using low temperature hydrothermal decomposition to immobilize glucose oxidase (GOx). The one-dimensional ZnO nanorods provide a large effective surface area with high surface-to-volume ratio and provide a favorable environment for the immobilization of GOx. The AlGaN∕GaN HEMT drain-source current showed a rapid response of less than 5s when target glucose in a buffer with a pH value of 7.4 was added to the GOx immobilized on the ZnO nanorod surface. We could detect a wide range of concentrations from 0.5nMto125μM. The sensor exhibited a linear range from 0.5nMto14.5μM and an experiment limit of detection of 0.5nM. This demonstrates the possibility of using AlGaN∕GaN HEMTs for noninvasive exhaled breath condensate based glucose detection of diabetic application.

Pressure-induced changes in the conductivity of AlGaN∕GaN high-electron mobility-transistor membranes

AlGaN∕GaN high-electron-mobility transistors (HEMTs) show a strong dependence of source∕drain current on the piezoelectric-polarization-induced two-dimensional electron gas. The spontaneous and piezoelectric-polarization-induced surface and interface charges can be used to develop very sensitive but robust sensors for the detection of pressure changes. The changes in the conductance of the channel of a AlGaN∕GaN high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) membrane structure fabricated on a Si substrate were measured during the application of both tensile and compressive strain through changes in the ambient pressure. The conductivity of the channel shows a linear change of −(+)6.4×10−2mS∕bar for application of compressive (tensile) strain. The AlGaN∕GaN HEMT membrane-based sensors appear to be promising for pressure sensing applications.

Electrical detection of immobilized proteins with ungated AlGaN∕GaN high-electron-mobility Transistors

Ungated AlGaN∕GaN high-electron-mobility transistor (HEMT) structures were functionalized in the gate region with aminopropyl silane. This serves as a binding layer to the AlGaN surface for attachment of fluorescent biological probes. Fluorescence microscopy shows that the chemical treatment creates sites for specific absorption of probes. Biotin was then added to the functionalized surface to bind with high affinity to streptavidin proteins. The HEMT drain-source current showed a clear decrease of 4μA as this protein was introduced to the surface, showing the promise of this all-electronic detection approach for biological sensing.