Facile Synthesis and Characterization of Iron Oxide Semiconductor Nanowires for Gas Sensing Application

We report a facile and efficient synthesis technique for the preparation of iron oxide semiconductor nanowires in large quantity by using nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA) as a chelating agent to form polymeric chains, followed by heat treatment. This technique can also be applied for preparing other transition metal oxide nanowires such as MnO 2 nanowires and NiO nanowires. The as-prepared α-Fe 2 O 3 nanowires have exhibited a blue shift of bandgap, peculiar magnetic properties, and high sensitivities toward ethanol and acetic acid gases.