Universal parameters for carbon nanotube network-based sensors: can nanotube sensors be reproducible?

Carbon nanotube (CNT) network-based sensors have been often considered unsuitable for practical applications due to their unpredictable characteristics. Herein, we report the study of universal parameters which can be used to characterize CNT network-based sensors and make their response predictable. A theoretical model is proposed to explain these parameters, and sensing experiments for mercury (Hg(2+)) and ammonium (NH(4)(+)) ions using CNT network-based sensors were performed to confirm the validity of our model.

Large-scale assembly of silicon nanowire network-based devices using conventional microfabrication facilities.

We present a method for assembling silicon nanowires (Si-NWs) in virtually general shape patterns using only conventional microfabrication facilities. In this method, silicon nanowires were functionalized with amine groups and dispersed in deionized water. The functionalized Si-NWs exhibited positive surface charges in the suspensions, and they were selectively adsorbed and aligned onto negatively charged surface regions on solid substrates. As a proof of concepts, we demonstrated transistors based on individual Si-NWs and long networks of Si-NWs.

Fabrication and device characterization of omega-shaped-gate ZnO nanowire field-effect transistors.

Omega-shaped-gate (OSG) nanowire-based field effect transistors (FETs) have attracted a great deal of attention recently, because theoretical simulations predicted that they should have a higher device performance than nanowire-based FETs with other gate geometries. OSG FETs with channels composed of ZnO nanowires were successfully fabricated in this study using photolithographic processes. In the OSG FETs fabricated on oxidized Si substrates, the channels composed of ZnO nanowires with diameters of about 110 nm are coated with Al(2)O(3) using atomic layer deposition, which surrounds the channels and acts as a gate dielectric. About 80% of the surfaces of the nanowires coated with Al(2)O(3) are covered with the gate metal to form OSG FETs. A representative OSG FET fabricated in this study exhibits a mobility of 30.2 cm(2)/ (V s), a peak transconductance of 0.4 muS (V(g) = -2.2 V), and an I(on)/I(off) ratio of 10(7). To the best of our knowledge, the value of the I(on)/I(off) ratio obtained from this OSG FET is higher than that of any of the previously reported nanowire-based FETs. Its mobility, peak transconductance, and I(on)/I(off) ratio are remarkably enhanced by 3.5, 32, and 10(6) times, respectively, compared with a back-gate FET with the same ZnO nanowire channel as utilized in the OSG FET.