Room-Temperature ZnO Nanoparticle Ethanol Gas Sensors under UV Illumination

A zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticle gas sensor was formed by spin coating. We annealed the film at 400, 600, and 800°C for 1 h in air to create a gas sensor. The responses of the gas sensor to ethanol under UV light illumination were investigated. We found that the ZnO nanoparticle film annealed at 800°C had the highest sensitivity. This can be attributed to the fact that the defects of ZnO nanoparticle film annealed at 800°C are considerably more than those for the film annealed at other temperatures. This study demonstrates that ZnO nanoparticles have potential applications as room-temperature ethanol sensors.