Adjustability of the Sensitivity to Ethanol Vapor in ZnO/SnO2 Double Layer Thin Film Gas Sensors

Double layer ZnO/SnO2 thin film resistive gas sensors were fabricated by successive PVD of those oxides onto porcelain substrates. The metallic contacts were provided by electron beam evaporation of platinum onto substrates prior to deposition of the gas sensitive layers. Deposits were thermally annealed at different temperatures. It was shown that the activation energy of electrical conduction in the double layer depends on the annealing temperature. Higher annealing temperatures result in larger activation energies. The sensitivity of the double layer devices to ethanol vapor was measured and compared to that of single layer SnO2 sensors fabricated at similar conditions. It was shown for the first time that the gas sensitivity of ZnO/SnO2 thin film gas sensors can be adjusted by controlling parameters of the thermal annealing process.