Controllable synthesis of heterostructured CuO–ZnO microspheres for NO2 gas sensors

Abstract

Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) sensors experience the drawback of requiring high operating temperatures because of the low charge transfer ability of gas-sensing materials. Herein, an advanced NO2 sensor resistant to interference is designed using the interfacial energy barriers of a hierarchical CuO/ZnO composite. With the benefits of abundant desirable defect features, and the amplification effect of heterojunctions, the sensor based on CuO/ZnO composite with 10% Cu(CH3COO)2·H2O (S2) shows outstanding performance in terms of faster response and recovery time (1.8-fold/1.1-fold), higher response (3.1-fold), and lower power consumption (140℃ decrease) compared to the pristine ZnO sensor. Furthermore, the composite sensor exhibits long-term stability and reproducibility, indicating the potential promise of CuO/ZnO heterojunctions in interference-resistant detection of low-concentration NO2 in real applications. This study not only provides a rational solution to designing advanced gas sensors by tuning the interfacial energy barriers of heterojunctions, but also provides a fundamental understanding of CuO structures in the gas-sensing field.