Preparation of three dimensional Cu2O/Au/GO hybrid electrodes and its application as a non-enzymatic glucose sensor

• An electrochemical sensor based on the novel 3D Cu 2 O/Au/GO hybrid electrode was first proposed and applied to detect glucose in real serum and beverages. • The Au was decorated on the surface of Cu 2 O nanocubes, while the graphene oxide formed the interconnected clothing-like core–shell structure. • Owing to the unique structure, the sensing performances of 3D Cu 2 O/Au/GO hybrid electrode was improved significantly. Herein, the novel three dimensional hybrid electrodes based on Au and graphene oxide co-modified Cu 2 O were successfully synthesized via a seed-medium process combined with electrodeposition. Moreover, in order to clarify the effect of different modified materials on the structure and glucose sensing ability, single graphene oxide and single Au modified Cu 2 O electrodes were fabricated. The fine Au nanoparticles were decorated on the surface of Cu 2 O nanocubes, while the graphene oxide formed the interconnected clothing-like core–shell structure. Thanks to the glucose catalytic ability of Au, both Au modified Cu 2 O and Au and graphene oxide co-modified Cu 2 O electrodes showed double sensing regions, which leads to a significant improvement in the linear ranges and can be applied to more complex detection environments. The Au modified Cu 2 O electrode exhibited the highest sensitivity (up to 3041 μAmM −1 cm −2 ) and relatively wide linear range (11.65 mM), while the Au and graphene oxide co-modified Cu 2 O electrode shared the widest linear range (up to 16.65 mM) and acceptable sensitivity (2886 μAmM −1 cm −2 ). Moreover, the excellent selectivity, stability together with the excellent sensing ability in real serum and beverages make the obtained electrodes have the potential for practical applications.