Nanoelectronic Oxygen Sensor

About

Background: Chemically sensitive solid-state resistor (chemiresistor) and luminescence platforms based on a molecular system with room temperature O2 gas sensitivity have a broad range of applications in both civilian and military settings by monitoring oxygen levels in enclosed environments or as wearable personal safety devices. Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) have been heralded as an ideal candidate for incorporation into extremely small and low power chemiresistor devices because they demonstrate extreme environmental sensitivity, high electrical conductivity, and inherent compatibility with existing micro-electronic fabrication techniques.  Technology: The technology involves the preparation of a composite film made by depositing CNT on a substrate, followed by depositing a dendrimer that contains Eu3+ ions and naphthalimide sensitizer groups. The film can be a fluorescence sensor and/or a chemiresistance sensor. A UV LED is needed; UV light results in an increase in conductance where the presence of oxygen provides a mechanism to return to the initial state with time. When the change in conductance is measured for a given time, like 200 seconds, there is a linear response of this charge with oxygen concentration. Applications: * Detection of oxygen concentrations at ambient temperature and pressure. Ultimately, the incorporation of the invented nanoelectronic system into low power, micro-electronic devices will address broad range of applications in civilian and military arenas for wearable personal safety devices and ambient O2 sensors for enclosed environments such as aircraft, submarines or spacecraft.  * Clinical breath monitoring (breath-by-breath oximetry) which is a practical and low-cost biodiagnostic tool. For this application small size, light weight, and low power requirements of the invented oxygen sensor are important for its incorporation into a wearable mask. Advantages: * The chemi-resistance system can be made as a very small device compared to the spectroscopic (absorption and luminescence) system. However, the systems can be used together for comparison purposes. The technology is most likely only applicable to research and medical systems as the current spectroscopic system is used. The technology would not be applicable to other high temperature oxygen sensing applications.