Investigation of the hydrogen gas sensing properties of nanoporous Pd alloy films based on AAO templates

, In this study, the hydrogen sensing properties of nanoporous Pd-Ag and Pd-Cu alloy films based on anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) templates were investigated at various temperatures (25-100 degrees C) and hydrogen with concentrations in the range between 250 and 5000ppm in high purity nitrogen to determine the temperature-sensitivity relationship. A hexagonally shaped AAO template of approximately 50nm in diameter and 10 mu m in length was fabricated as a substrate for supporting a nanoporous Pd alloy film with an approximate thickness of 80 nm. The morphologies of the AAO template and the Pd alloy films were studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The hydrogen sensing properties of the nanoporous Pd-Ag and Pd-Cu alloy films were measured using a transient resistance method. The sensor responses of the nanoporous Pd-Ag and Pd-Cu films on the AAO template were better than the traditional Pd-Ag and Pd-Cu thin film sensors; the sensitivities of the sensors were approximately 1.6% and 1.2%, respectively, for 1000ppm H(2), and the detection limit was 250ppm at room temperature. The highest sensitivity was measured at room temperature for all alloy nanoporous sensors, and the sensitivity of the Pd-Ag nanoporous alloy was higher than that of the Pd-Cu nanoporous alloy. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.