Particle Technology Laboratory, Institute of Process Engineering, Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering, ETH Zürich, CH-8092 Zürich, Switzerland.
Nat Nanotechnol. 2010 Jan;5(1):54-60. doi: 10.1038/nnano.2009.349. Epub 2009 Nov 29.
The enhanced performance and reduced scale that nanoparticles can bring to a device are frequently compromised by the poor electrical conductivity of nanoparticle structures or assemblies. Here, we demonstrate a unique nanoscale electrode assembly in which conduction is carried out by one set of nanoparticles, and other device functions by another set. Using a scalable process, nanoparticles with tailored conductivity are stochastically deposited above or below a functional nanoparticle film, and serve as extensions of the bulk electrodes, greatly reducing the total film resistance. We apply this approach to solid-state gas sensors and achieve controlled device resistance with an exceptionally high sensitivity to ethanol of 20 ppb. This approach can be extended to other classes of devices such as actuators, batteries, and fuel and solar cells.
纳米粒子可以提高设备的性能和缩小设备的规模，但纳米粒子结构或组件的导电性差常常会影响这些优势的发挥。在这里，我们展示了一种独特的纳米级电极组件，其中一组纳米粒子用于传导，另一组纳米粒子用于实现其他器件功能。我们使用可扩展的工艺，将具有特定导电性的纳米粒子随机沉积在功能纳米粒子薄膜的上方或下方，作为体电极的延伸，从而大大降低了薄膜的总电阻。我们将这种方法应用于固态气体传感器，并实现了对乙醇的超高灵敏度（20ppb）的可控器件电阻。这种方法可以扩展到其他类型的器件，如执行器、电池、燃料和太阳能电池。
