Highly response gas sensor based the Au-ZnO films processed by combining magnetron sputtering and Ar plasma treatment

Abstract The excellent and promising gas sensors not only have high response, but also can be easily integrated with other semiconductor devices to form an intelligent chip. In order to realize this goal, an effective strategy is proposed to combine the magnetron sputtering and Ar plasma treatment. As a result, a high-performance sensor based on Au-ZnO films is achieved at the optimal technology parameter, with high response (R a /R g ) of 190 to 100 ppm isopropanol (IPA), rapid response/recovery speed of 1 s/18 s, and low detection limit of 100 ppb at 300 °C. Moreover, the mechanisms of the improvement on the sensing properties of the as-fabricated sensor are discussed. The present work provides new ideas for the future development of integrating gas sensors with functional circuits to form a smart chip that can perform data acquisition, processing and storage.