(Invited) Microfabricated Chemical Sensors for Industrial, Health and Environmental Monitoring

Abstract

There remains a strong need for miniaturized, low-power gas sensors that can be deployed in wireless applications for improved environmental protection, for public health, and for safe and efficient operation of many industrial processes. Leveraging the microfabrication technologies and utilizing innovations in high surface area nanomaterials are providing exciting opportunities towards low-power microchemical sensors. In this presentation, I will discuss one of the approaches we have been pursuing, which is based on a highly efficient microheater platform with fast response and recovery times. The design, fabrication and characteristics of this platform will be presented. I will also discuss the use of two-dimensional materials for gas sensing applications since they offer the highest possible surface area for gas interaction, leading to high sensitivity. Assembling these two-dimensional materials into three-dimensional assemblies, such as aerogels, provides a low-density material with large number of interconnected pores that increases the surface area available in a given footprint while maintaining the properties of the few-layer sheets. By integrating these nanomaterials with our microheater platform, we have achieved fast and sensitive detection of several health and environmental pollutants. The talk will end with current limitations and plans for future directions.