The Present State of Amperometric Nanowire 

Sensors for Chemical and Biological Detection 

by M. H. Ervin, S. J. Kilpatrick, C. Lombardo, 

B. M. Nichols, A. C. Perrella, and A. E. Wickenden 

ARL-TR-3962 October 2006 

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Army Research Laboratory 

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ARL-TR-3962 October 2006 

The Present State of Amperometric Nanowire 

Sensors for Chemical and Biological Detection 

M. H. Ervin, S. J. Kilpatrick, C. Lombardo, 

B. M. Nichols, A. C. Perrella, and A. E. Wickenden 

Sensors and Electron Devices Directorate, ARL 

Approved for public release; distribution unlimited. 
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14. ABSTRACT 

This report reviews the research in chemical sensing at the nanometer scale using amperometric detection focusing on 

publications from January 2004 to September 2005. The devices discussed fall into two categories: chemresistors and 

chemFETs. In either configuration, the number of carriers available in the channel, and hence the device’s transconductance, 

changes as a function of analyte exposure. Devices based on inorganic nanowires (specifically limited to metal oxides and 

silicon), conductive organic polymer fibers, and carbon nanotubes are discussed as issues of sensitivity, selectivity, 

response/refresh times, etc. 

15. SUBJECT TERMS

Nanowire, sensor, chem./bio detection 

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Contents 

List of Figures v

List of Tables v

1. Introduction 1

2. Inorganic Sensors 4

2.1 Metal Oxides...................................................................................................................4 

2.1.1 Introduction .........................................................................................................4 

2.1.2 Metal Oxide Nanowire Growth...........................................................................5 

2.1.3 Carrier Transport .................................................................................................5 

2.1.4 Detection Mechanisms........................................................................................6 

2.1.5 Sensor Devices....................................................................................................6 

2.1.6 Analytes/Sensitivity/Reversibility.......................................................................7 

2.1.7 Selectivity............................................................................................................8 

2.1.8 Other Issues.........................................................................................................9 

2.1.9 Conclusions.........................................................................................................9 

2.2 Silicon...........................................................................................................................10 

2.2.1 Introduction .......................................................................................................10 

2.2.2 Si Nanowire Fabrication....................................................................................10 

2.2.3 Carrier Transport ...............................................................................................11 

2.2.4 Detection Mechanisms......................................................................................11 

2.2.5 Sensor Devices..................................................................................................11 

2.2.6 Analytes/Sensitivity/Reversibility.....................................................................12 

2.2.7 Selectivity..........................................................................................................12 

2.2.8 Conclusions.......................................................................................................12 

3. Organic Sensors 13

3.1 Conducting Polymer Sensors........................................................................................13 

3.1.1 Introduction .......................................................................................................13 

3.1.2 Frequently Used Polymers ................................................................................13 

3.1.3 Detection Mechanisms......................................................................................14 

3.1.4 Metal-Polymer Contacts....................................................................................15 

3.1.5 Sensitivity and Selectivity .................................................................................16 

iii
3.1.6 Reliability and Saturation..................................................................................16 

3.1.7 Conclusions.......................................................................................................17 

3.2 Carbon Nanotube Sensors.............................................................................................17 

3.2.1 Introduction .......................................................................................................17 

3.2.2 Structure ............................................................................................................17 

3.2.3 Growth...............................................................................................................18 

3.2.4 Carrier Transport ...............................................................................................19 

3.2.5 Detection Mechanisms......................................................................................19 

3.2.6 Chem/Bio Sensors.............................................................................................20 

3.2.7 Sensitivity..........................................................................................................24 

3.2.8 Selectivity..........................................................................................................27 

3.2.9 Conclusions.......................................................................................................28 

4. Summary 29

5. References 31

Distribution List 39 

iv
List of Figures 

Figure 1. Web of Science literature search, by year for the period of 1990-2005, using the 

keywords “electronic nose,” “nanosensor*,” and “nanoelectronic*”. The period of 

January 2004 to September 2005 is analyzed in the current report. ..........................................3 

List of Tables 

Table 1. Point exposure sensing requirements for selected chemicals. ..........................................2 

v
INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK. 

vi
1. Introduction 

Ultra-miniaturized autonomous sensors that can communicate the presence of chemical or 

biological agents in real time provide many strategic advantages to the Army. Examples of 

battlefield applications include the detection of airborne chemical attacks using UAV- or Soldiermounted sensors to enable the evacuation of personnel or the activation of protective apparel 

before lethal doses are reached, and the identification of foodborne pathogens in shipments of 

rations to ensure a safe food supply and improve food transport efficiency (1). The goals in the 

development of such sensors include high sensitivity to one or more analytes of interest, and the 

ability to sense each analyte discretely against a complex background environment. For 

example, they must “be capable of distinguishing and rejecting common battlespace and 

environmental constituents (smoke, dust, pollen, ash, rain, sand, snow, etc.)” (2). An example of 

typical sensor specifications provided by the Joint Science and Technology Office for Chemical 

and Biological Defense is given in table 1. Sensors for both biological and chemical agents are 

expected to exhibit a 99% probability of detection, with 97% detection specificity. 

The sensor system, including the sensing element, processor, communications circuit, and power 

source, must additionally be lightweight, small, and power efficient. The sensor could be 

attached to an unobtrusive location on the Soldier or supplies. For example, sensors could be 

incorporated into the fibers of clothing or packaging, and a Soldier would be unaware of the 

presence of the sensors unless they activate and signal a warning. Sensors have also been 

envisioned which use bio/electronic interfaces for the detection of biological processes or 

unknown, novel biological agents. Accordingly, a size scale of (100 μm)3

 or smaller may 

ultimately be envisioned for the sensor subsystem, presenting specific scientific and 

technological challenges. For example, since chemical detection initiates with an absorptive or 

bonding chemical interaction mechanism, and the degree of chemical interaction scales with 

surface area, a large surface area in a small volume is desired to enhance the detected signal. 

The sensors must also consume small amounts of power to alleviate the weight load and 

maintenance associated with power source requirements. Some level of signal processing at the 

point of detection is required to filter the desired actionable information, and that information 

must be communicated to the next stage of action. Finally, the integrated system must be robust, 

and perform with near-zero false-positive rates under a wide range of temperature, humidity, 

atmospheric pressures, and mechanical stresses. 

Materials and active devices which have been engineered at the nanometer length scale show 

promise in addressing these requirements. In addition to achieving extreme device 

miniaturization, nanowire and nanotube electronic materials are being extensively studied 

because the alteration of material properties at the nanometer size scale can have a large impact 

on their ability to react with the environment around them. Electrical, mechanical, thermal and 

1
other properties are changed relative to bulk material properties due to physical differences in the 

nanoscale entity. These include a relative prevalence of surface states, exclusion of dislocations, 

and phonon confinement and/or scattering. Physisorption of polar molecules, chemisorption of 

molecules, or changes in ion distributions at the surface alter the conductivity of nanowires by 

producing a local electric field which alters the nearby concentration of carriers in the wire. 

Table 1. Point exposure sensing requirements for selected chemicals. 

Chemical Agent Point exposure 

Nerve (VX) 0.04 mg/m3 in ≤ 90s 

0.1 mg/m3 in ≤ 30s 

1.0 mg/m3 in ≤ 10s 

Nerve (GA, GB, GD, GF) 0.1 mg/m3 in ≤ 30s 

1.0 mg/m3 in ≤ 10s 

Blister (HD, L, HN3) 2.0 mg/m3 in ≤ 120s 

50.0 mg/m3 in ≤ 10s 

Blood (AC) 22 mg/m3 in ≤ 60s 

2500 mg/m3 in ≤ 10s 

Blood (CK) 20 mg/m3 in ≤ 60s 

Toxic Industrial Chemical (TIC)/ 

Toxic Industrial Material (TIM) 

Point exposure 

Ammonia (NH3) 150 ppm 

Arsine (AsH3) 3 ppm 

Carbon disulfide (CS2) 550 ppm 

Chlorine (Cl2) 15 ppm 

Diborane (B2H6) 20 ppm 

Fluorine (F2) 5 ppm 

Hydrogen bromide (HBr) 20 ppm 

Hydrogen cyanide (HCN) 50 ppm 

Hydrogen fluoride (HF) 25 ppm 

Nitric acid (HNO3) 50 ppm 

Phosgene (CCl2O) 1 ppm 

Phosphorous trichloride (PCl3) 25 ppm 

Sulfur dioxide (SO2) 200 ppm 

Sulphuric acid (H2SO4) 40 ppm 

Chemical agent acronym key, with information taken from the websites 

http://www.cbwinfo.com/Chemical/CWList.shtml and http://www.chemindustry.com/apps/chemicals : 

VX: Phosphonothioic acid; methyl-, S-[2-[bis(1-methylethyl)amino]ethyl] O-ethyl ester; C11H26NO2PS 

GA: Tabun – Phosphoramidocyanidic acid; dimethyl-, ethyl ester; C5H11N2O2P 

GB: Sarin – Phosphonofluoridic acid, methyl-, 1-methylethyl ester; C4H10FO2P 

GD: Soman – Phosphonofluoridic acid, methyl-, 1,2,2-trimethylpropyl ester; C7H16FO2P 

GF: Cyclosarin – Phosphonofluoridic acid, methyl-, cyclohexyl ester, C7H14FO2P 

HD: Distilled mustard gas; 1-chloro-2-(2-chloroethylsulfanyl)ethane; C4H8Cl2S 

L: Lewisite, dichloro-(2-chloroethenyl)arsane; C2H2AsCl3

HN3: nitrogen mustard 3, 

AC: hydrogen cyanide, HCN 

CK: cyanogen chloride, CClN 

2
Since the Debye screening length is similar to the nanowire diameter, it is possible to achieve 

very sensitive conductivity response to induced polarization, with smaller wires being more 

sensitive. Nanostructured chemical sensors offer specific advantages due to large surface area to 

volume ratios which may result in increased sensitivity and reduced response times. In addition, 

active nanoelectronic sensor devices offer the promise of low power consumption and integration 

with supporting signal processing and communications electronics. While optical sensing 

approaches have shown promise in the areas of detection resolution and selectivity, those 

techniques are currently incompatible with chip integration. The ability to integrate sensors with 

existing and future signal processing and communication technologies is critical for a real-time 

battlefield sensor. Amperometric sensors allow electrical read-out which is simpler, both in 

hardware and in the avoidance of labeling requirements (e.g., fluorescent tagging), relative to 

optoelectronic approaches (3). Research activity in the area of nanoelectronic sensors has 

increased dramatically in recent years, as evidenced by the results of a Web of Science literature 

search of papers published by year for the period of 1990-2005, using the keywords “electronic 

nose,” “nanosensor*,” and “nanoelectronic*”, shown in figure 1. 

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

year

# publications

nanoelectronics

nanosensors

electronic nose

Figure 1. Web of Science literature search, by year for the period of 1990-2005, using the 

keywords “electronic nose,” “nanosensor*,” and “nanoelectronic*”. The period 

of January 2004 to September 2005 is analyzed in the current report. 

3
This report reviews and summarizes the state of current research in chemical sensing at the 

nanometer scale through transport interrogation, defined as the monitoring of a given transport 

property to determine the presence of a chemical analyte. Accordingly, this report focuses on 

publications during the period of January 2004 to September 2005, with earlier published work 

discussed where appropriate. The main nanoelectronic device technologies addressed in this 

report are inorganic sensing devices (specifically limited to metal oxides and silicon), conductive 

organic polymer sensing devices, and devices based on carbon nanotube technology. Transport 

interrogation could include monitoring current through a device under conditions of constant 

bias, or monitoring a change in voltage under conditions of constant current. Although many of 

the interrogation techniques published to date and discussed in this report are direct current (DC) 

approaches, no restriction on specific detection technique should be implied. The transport 

interrogation devices discussed in this report fall primarily into one of two categories: 

chemresistors and chemFETs (for a general review see Gerard et al. (4)). The chemresistor (also 

called chemoresistor or chemiresistor) is the simplest possible chemical sensor. It is comprised 

of an element (such as a nanotube, polymer fiber, etc.) with a resistivity that is a function of 

analyte exposure. A chemFET is a field effect transistor (FET) structure which has either a 

chemically sensitive channel, or a chemically sensitive gate dielectric. In either configuration, 

the number of carriers available in the channel, and hence the transconductance, changes as a 

function of analyte exposure. Typically chemFETs are more sensitive devices, however, they 

may consume more power and are in general more difficult to fabricate than chemresistors. One 

distinct advantage of the chemFET is that in several cases the ability to actively reset the sensor 

has been demonstrated by simply reversing the gate bias. This is in contrast to most 

chemresistor examples which are either one time use only, or may have refresh times on the 

order of tens of minutes to hours. 

In this report, the state of the art, in both the science and the technology, of nanoelectronic 

sensing devices will be addressed. 

2. Inorganic Sensors 

2.1 Metal Oxides 

2.1.1 Introduction 

Considerable effort is being put into the development of semiconducting metal oxide sensors. 

Tin oxide and zinc oxide are the two most commonly used materials. They are wide bandgap 

semiconductors, with bandgaps of 3.6 and 3.4 eV, respectively. While most commercial thin 

film or bulk metal oxide gas sensors are based on tin oxide (5), zinc oxide exhibits the widest 

variety of nanostructures, and possesses the additional features of being piezoelectric and 

4
biocompatible (6). Since tin oxide and zinc oxide are the most studied systems, they will be used 

as examples to illustrate the properties of metal oxide nanowires and devices. 

2.1.2 Metal Oxide Nanowire Growth 

A wide variety of growth methods have been used in producing metal oxide nanowires and other 

structures. Chemical vapor deposition in a tube furnace is the most widely used technique, 

where the growth is generally agreed to proceed via the vapor liquid solid (VLS) growth 

mechanism. In VLS growth, ZnO vapor is produced by heating a ZnO charge in the furnace, and 

adsorbs on a catalyst droplet which has a higher sticking coefficient. This droplet becomes 

supersaturated and precipitates the ZnO on the end of the growing nanowire (7). 

The nanowire morphology is greatly influenced by the deposition conditions such as 

temperature, pressure, carrier gas, and substrate. A surprisingly large number of ZnO 

morphologies are attainable with these variables, including: nanowires, nanobelts, nanocombs, 

nanosaws, nanosprings, nanobows, nanopropellers, porous nanowires, (8, 9) box beams, square 

nanotubes (10), etc. In all of these cases, the nanostructures are single crystalline with a 

preferred crystalline orientation. In the following discussion, the term nanowire will be used 

broadly to include some or all of the structures listed above. 

Some other growth techniques which have been used to make metal oxide nanowires include 

molecular beam epitaxy, electrochemical deposition, pyrolysis, selective deposition, chemical 

etching, laser ablation, focused ion beam (FIB), x-ray/deep UV lithography, and melt injection 

into anodized aluminum pores (6-8, 11-18). 

2.1.3 Carrier Transport 

Tin oxide and zinc oxide are both n-type semiconductors in which oxygen vacancies act as 

electron donors. As a result, the conductivity of the nanowires can be tuned by adjusting the 

density of oxygen vacancies. This is done by annealing the nanowires in various ambients. For 

instance, as-grown SnO2 wires are typically non-conducting. Annealing at 800 oC for 2 hours in 

1 atmosphere of oxygen produces considerable conductivity. Subsequent annealing in vacuum, 

oxygen, or air can be used to tune the conductivity to the desired value. In fact, exposure to 

vacuum at room temperature can alter the conductivity by changing the amount of adsorbed 

oxygen species. Reducing the oxygen species in this way results in an increase in conductivity, 

while low temperature anneals in oxygen or air does the reverse (7). 

In addition to carrier donation by oxygen vacancies, the wires may be doped by atomic 

substitution such as Mg implantation into ZnO (6). Carriers have also been donated to a 

nanowire from smaller bandgap nanoparticles on the surface, as demonstrated for CdS on ZnO 

nanowires (19). The conduction mechanism has been determined to be variable range hopping 

for ZnO (20) and vanadium pentoxide (21). Electron mobilities in ZnO have been reported in 

the range of 17 to 200 cm2

/Vs (5, 15). Other reported electron mobilities include: 160 cm2/Vs 

for tin oxide, 100 cm2

/Vs for indium oxide, 10 cm2/Vs for tungsten oxide, and 0.4 cm2/Vs for 

5
titanium oxide. Ni oxide, which is a p-type semiconductor, is reported to have a hole mobility of 

0.2 cm2

/Vs (5). Conductivities spanning 0.09-75 Ω–1cm–1 have been reported for ZnO. The 

electron diffusion length has been measured to be on the order of 1-5 nm, so that the nanowire is 

still effectively 3D as far as the electron is concerned (20, 22). 3D transport is further supported 

by the observation of negative differential resistance regime. It has been proposed that this 

results from carrier redistribution to the wire surface, with increasing source-drain bias, where 

the mobility is reduced due to scattering (17). 

2.1.4 Detection Mechanisms 

Physisorption of polar molecules, chemisorption of molecules, or changes in ion distributions at 

the surface alter the conductivity of nanowires by producing a local electric field which alters the 

nearby concentration of carriers in the wire. Since the Debye screening length (the depth the 

field will penetrate into the material) is similar to the nanowire diameter, it is possible to achieve 

very sensitive conductivity response to induced polarization (23) due to a shifting of the Fermi 

level away from the conduction band throughout the wire (17). Adsorption of electron donating 

species, such as NH3, will increase conductivity while electron withdrawing groups, such as 

NO2, will reduce conductivity. In fact, the detected species may produce a response by merely 

interacting with adsorbed species such as O2

2-, O-

, O2-, H+, or OH-, (5, 6). For instance, ethanol 

reacts with O-

 releasing electrons back into the wire which is then more conductive (24). 

The correlation between the Debye length and the nanowire diameter is the basis of the increased 

sensitivity of nanowire sensors as compared to bulk or thin film sensors. In the nanowires, the 

carrier concentration is altered thoughout the entire wire, whereas for macro sensors, the 

conductivity is only affected near the grain boundaries (25). Comparing nanowires to thin films 

of similar thicknesses, the nanowires experience a square root of three more depletion since there 

are fewer charges available as the depth of penetration increases (11). As nanowires get smaller, 

they become more sensitive. A surface potential will change the conductance of a 50 nm wire 20 

times more than for a 200 nm wire (3). 

2.1.5 Sensor Devices 

Metal oxide sensing elements are well suited to either of the two basic types of sensors described 

earlier. Chemresistors may be a single or multiple wire device. The multiple wire devices may 

comprise many wires in parallel (11) or may be made using a mat or paste of nanowires. Metal 

oxide chemresistors may be operated at room temperature, or they may be operated at elevated 

temperature (e.g., 200-400 °C). For example, a paste chemresistor uses a nanowire paste applied 

between gold electrodes on an alumina rod which contains a heating element (26). The reported 

resistance of one such sensor is in the GΩ range (24). Sensor response times in the tens of 

seconds and recovery times in the tens of minutes have been reported for bulk and thin film 

sensors (5). It is anticipated that nano-sensors could improve these speeds. A ten minute 

response time has been reported for a titania nanowire chemresistor detecting hydrogen (16), 

while a ~30 second response time has been reported for a multi(nano)wire carbon monoxide 

6
sensor (17). A single gallium oxide nanowire ethanol sensor with a 2.5 second response time has 

also been reported (27). 

ChemFET structures are most commonly fabricated using the nanowire as the channel and the 

supporting substrate as the gate (15, 17, 22, 28-30). The substrate is typically a conductive wafer 

serving as the gate, with a surface oxide to prevent electrical shorting of the gate to the wire. 

Using this backside gating approach, the carrier concentration is changed along the entire length 

of the nanowire and not just in a localized region as would be the case with a localized gate 

electrode. The advantage of using a gate electrode is that by electronically adjusting the carrier 

concentration in the wire, the sensitivity of the sensor can be adjusted, and as will be discussed 

later, there is the potential of tuning the selectivity as well (17, 22). Switching ratios of 100 (6), 

1000 (22) and even up to one million (31) have been reported. An indium oxide multiple 

nanowire chemFET sensor for ammonia has exhibited a ~1000 s response time. 

While single wire and multiple wire devices have been demonstrated, the most desirable 

approach has not yet been determined. Single wire devices promise the fastest speeds and lowest 

power consumption, while holding the potential for single molecule detection (29). On the other 

hand, multiple wire devices will likely be more reliable, easier to fabricate, and they will average 

out the variations in response of individual wires (30). They may have an additional contribution 

to sensitivity from nanowire/nanowire junctions which, upon adsorption of the analyte, reduce 

conductivity by more than the surface depletion (30). However, multiple wire FETs will exhibit 

reduced gate sensitivity if the wires are stacked such that some of them are separated from the 

gate (30). 

2.1.6 Analytes/Sensitivity/Reversibility 

The analytes which have been detected by metal oxide sensors are typically oxidizing or 

reducing species. Demonstrated sensor applications have included: acidity (pH), hydrogen (H2), 

humidity (H2O), propane (C3H8), hydrogen sulfide (H2S), methanethiol (CH3SH), ethanol 

(C2H5OH), liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), nitric oxide (NO), nitrous oxide (NO2), acetone 

(CH3COCH3), C5H11CHO, carbon monoxide (CO), ammonia (NH3), (CH3)3N, ozone (O3), 

methane (CH4), CH3COC2H5, (C2H5)3N, C2H2, and CH3SSCH3 , butane and acetylene among 

others (5, 26). Detection limits have been reported for various species: 200 ppb NO2 (23), <1 

ppm ethanol vapor (25), and 2 micromolar H2O2 (32). It has been suggested that single molecule 

detection may be possible (29). A pH sensor with a linear pH response over the range 2-12 and 

0.1 pH resolution has also been reported (33), and device design may improve sensitivity. For 

instance, the frequency of a ring oscillator changes by more than the mobility of one of its 

component FETs (29). 

While the liquid sensors typically operate at room temperature, the gas sensors have a range of 

operating temperatures, usually from room temperature up to about 400 oC. The elevated 

temperatures sometimes used with chemresistors help increase reaction rates and sensitivity as 

well as producing reversible binding/reaction, although too high a temperature can prevent 

7
adsorption of the analyte (5). UV irradiation, with energy of more than the bandgap, can also be 

used to reset the sensor by desorbing the bound species and releasing charge trapped at the 

interfaces which causes hysteresis (5, 17, 30). Another method of refreshing the sensor 

demonstrated in chemFETs is to apply a strong gate pulse which was shown to electrodesorb 

NO2 and NH3 adsorbates. In particular, a pulse of –30 V/60 seconds was enough to drive off 

NH3 while –60 V/60 seconds was required to drive off NO2 (23). 

2.1.7 Selectivity 

Metal oxide sensors are lacking in selectivity, as most adsorbed species will produce a depletion 

layer, and any interaction with surface complexes such as O–, O2

–

, H+, or OH- will produce a 

response (6), as will any Lewis acid or base. Indeed, the multiple reaction pathways in which 

one analyte may participate may produce another type of selectivity problem, since the multiple 

reactions may complicate the calculation of surface concentration from the measured 

conductance (17). Due to the poor selectivity of simple devices, most of the sensors reported 

have been tested using a model system such as ultrapure water or Ar gas containing a dilute 

amount of the analyte of interest. Some of the gas sensing demonstrations used room air 

including humidity. However, many approaches to improving selectivity using chemical, 

physical, electronic, or pattern recognition means have been proposed. 

Chemically, the nanowires could be modified by including additives, catalysts, promoters, or 

surface functionalization to improve the selectivity or greatly increase the sensitivity to one 

component of the mixture to be analyzed (5, 33). Some common chemistries for functionalizing 

metal oxides include the use of carboxylic acids, phosphonates, siloxanes, or hydroxamic acids 

(12). An approach similar to functionalization, which could be applied to chemFETs, would be 

to use chemically sensitive gate dielectrics (perhaps coupled with an enzyme, e.g., glucose 

oxidase, which reacts specifically with the analyte of interest) (29). 

Selectivity based on physical properties could include adsorption selectivity as a function of 

temperature (5) and size exclusion or other separation using nanotubes (12). A selective 

separation step might also be performed by a permeable coating on the sensor (30). A process 

for plasma polymerizing polypyrrole on to Au nanowires has already been demonstrated (34). 

An electrically conductive nanoparticle or nanowire composite using a nonconductive matrix, 

which swells by selectively absorbing the analyte, has also been suggested as a potentially viable 

sensor concept (29). 

The ability to electronically change the selectivity of the sensor may be the most interesting 

approach. It has been demonstrated that two different analytes, NH3 and NO2, required different 

bias pulses to desorb them from the sensor (23). A related approach would use changes in the 

carrier concentration to affect surface chemical properties and reaction rates by changing the 

number/potential energy of electrons available to participate in the reactions. The carrier 

concentration could be changed by doping (5, 24, 27) or with the applied gate bias (17, 22). A 

type of selectivity based on differences in doping has already been reported. A multiple wire 

8
device with individual wires having varying amounts of oxygen vacancies had individual wires 

which exhibited conductance changes in opposite directions upon adsorption of NH3. The 

“ensemble averaging” resulted in insensitivity to NH3 while maintaining sensitivity to and 

therefore selectivity for NO2 (30). 

The selectivity of some or all of the approaches above could be further multiplied by using 

pattern recognition and an array of different sensors (28, 29). The variety of sensors could also 

include sensor elements with more complex compositions such as: heterostructure, junction, and 

barrier composite nanobelts; complex oxides with two or more types of cations; and/or multiple 

types of nanobelts which would have different responses to a given analyte (7). 

2.1.8 Other Issues 

There are a number of additional issues, such as reproducibility of fabrication, stability, contact 

effects, packaging convenience, power requirements, etc. (29) that will need to be addressed for 

this technology to be viable. Stability is an issue with metal oxide nanowires, since exposure to 

oxidizing or reducing environments can change the degree of doping of the wires so that there 

may be memory effects from the order of measurements or processing steps. Some of these 

surface oxygen vacancies can diffuse into the bulk of the wire where they are less susceptible to 

surface chemistry and can result in long term stability issues. Trapped charges may produce 

hysteresis effects. Adsorbed contaminants or substrate impurities may also affect reproducibility 

and reliability. Some of these problems may be minimized with appropriate measurement 

protocols, cleaning routines, and heat or UV light irradiation (17). On the other hand, nanowires 

may provide some advantages over thin film or bulk sensors. Since nanowires are usually high 

quality single crystals, there will be no sensor drift from Oswald ripening as there can be in 

polycrystalline sensors (5, 7). 

Integration of nanowires into circuits presents another significant challenge. There is a need to 

align, self-assemble or selectively grow these nanowires so that they may be integrated into 

devices (7). Different materials and growth methods will undoubtedly require different 

solutions. While pick and place methods may be useful for prototyping individual sensors, 

massively parallel methods of aligning nanowires will be required to make large numbers of 

sensors economically. Large sensor arrays will have the additional requirement of aligning (and 

addressing) large numbers of dissimilar nanowires. 

2.1.9 Conclusions 

A wide variety of growth methods have been used to produce metal oxide nanowires, which are 

typically n-type semiconductors in which oxygen vacancies act as electron donors. The 

conductivity of these nanowires can be tuned by changing the density of oxygen vacancies, but 

this can also result in undesirable memory effects due to exposure to oxidizing or reducing 

environments. The analytes, which have been detected by metal oxide sensors, are typically 

oxidizing or reducing species with detection limits in the ppm and sub-ppm range. In fact, the 

9
detected species may produce a response by merely interacting with other adsorbed species. As 

a result, very little selectivity has been demonstrated to date. However, many approaches to 

improving selectivity/sensitivity using chemical, physical, or electronic means have been 

proposed. Chemically, the nanowires could be modified by including additives, catalysts, 

promoters, or surface functionalization to improve the selectivity or greatly increase the 

sensitivity to one component of the mixture to be analyzed. A selective separation step might 

also be performed. The ability to electronically change the selectivity of the sensor may be the 

most interesting approach. 

2.2 Silicon 

2.2.1 Introduction 

While silicon nanowire sensors are in many ways similar to the semiconducting metal oxide 

sensors described above, there are some interesting differences or additional information that 

warrant further discussion. 

2.2.2 Si Nanowire Fabrication 

Two approaches to Si nanowire fabrication have been used. Bottom-up fabrication using CVD 

in a furnace with silane precursor gas and metal nanoparticle catalysts has been used, with both 

n- and p-type nanowires demonstrated (11, 35-38). In fact, CVD has been used to grow carbon 

nanotubes on top of Si nanowires to produce heterostructures (39) and to produce SiC nanowires 

(40). One innovative metal catalyzed CVD approach uses the fact that the nanowires 

preferentially grow perpendicular to a Si [111] face to produce aligned nanowires that grow 

across a trench in a Si substrate. The trench sidewalls are heavily doped to provide electrical 

contacts (11). 

The top-down fabrication approach eliminates some of the alignment, assembly, and feature 

pitch issues associated with most bottom-up approaches. Top-down fabrication has been 

achieved using conventional Si IC processing. For example, e-beam lithography and reactiveion etching (RIE) has been used to produce Si nanowires (supported by oxide) using Si-oninsulator (SOI) wafers (3). A more elaborate approach referred to as the SNAP process, uses a 

selectively etched (Al)GaAs superlattice to produce a ridged template which is then metalized. 

The metal is then transferred to an SOI wafer using epoxy and a (Al)GaAs etch. These metal 

nanowires are then used as a shadow mask for subsequent plasma ashing (epoxy) and reactiveion etching (Si) steps to produce closely spaced and aligned Si nanowires (41). 

Mechanically there are limits as to what can be fabricated. It has been calculated that a 10 nm Si 

nanowire will collapse under its own weight at a length of 40 microns, and a 100 nm Si nanowire 

will collapse at 800 microns long (11). 

10
2.2.3 Carrier Transport 

A dopant concentration in the mid 1019 cm–3 has been proposed as the maximum allowing 

complete carrier depletion (11). It should be noted that there may be limits to the doping of very 

thin nanowires. Concern has been expressed that doping very thin wires (a few nm in diameter) 

might result in dopant atoms segregating to the surface or being of such low numbers that a 

fluctuating potential might be created which would impede current flow (11). Defects also 

become more of an issue as nanowire size decreases. As a result, the doping method is 

important, with MBE doping being the best and ion implantation the worst. Wires made from 

implanted Si were highly conducting down to about 50 nm, but below that, the wires were 

routinely resistive as the implantation defects limited the conduction. Processing may induce 

conductivity limiting defects as well. Spin-on glass doped wafers produced small wires with 

better conductivity (still >1 TΩ) compared to implanted wafers, but the wires were still about ten 

times worse than those from MBE wafers. The wires produced from MBE doped material had 

conductivities comparable to the bulk material. Clearly, choice of starting materials, doping 

method, and etching procedures are important for producing conductive nanowires below 50 nm 

(41). SiC nanowire substrate-backgated FETs with a resistivity of 2.2 x 10–2 Ωcm and a mobility 

of 15 cm2V–1s

–1, have been reported. The low mobility was ascribed to a high carrier 

concentration and high trap density due to a poor quality gate oxide (interface scattering) (40). 

2.2.4 Detection Mechanisms 

The detection mechanisms are essentially the same as described for the metal oxide nanowires 

above in so far as changes in ion distributions at the surface or surface binding events can alter 

the conductivity of the nanowires by producing a local electric field which alters the nearby 

concentration of carriers. While Si nanowires have been functionalized with binding sites for 

small molecules providing analyses similar to metal oxide sensors, they have also been 

demonstrated with binding sites specific to large biomolecules and even viruses. 

2.2.5 Sensor Devices 

Both chemresistors and chemFETs have been demonstrated, as have gas and liquid phase 

sensors. Many of the biomolecule sensors use a microfluidic channel to deliver the analyte to the 

sensor. This channel can be formed by etching a trench in the substrate which is then sealed with 

a glass coverslip, or by applying a flexible polymer microchannel to the chip. Frequently, the 

microfluidic channel is also used during the functionalization of the nanowire, after it has been 

cleaned with various gases, liquids and plasmas (36). After functionalization, the remaining nonactive surface sites are passivated. Polyethylene glycol is used to prevent nonspecific binding to 

the channel. A surface DNA probe coverage of 3E15 μm

–2 has been reported which agrees well 

with the 3.3 nm2

 footprint of the 12-mer probe used (42). 

11
2.2.6 Analytes/Sensitivity/Reversibility 

Analytes detected have included pH, ionic concentration, gas phase ammonia, and gas phase 

water (29). Biological applications include the detection of oligonucleotides/single stranded 

DNA (3, 42), a specifically mutated (cystic fibrosis) gene (35), viruses (36), and molecules of 

biochemical significance such as adenosine triphosphate (ATP) (37). Complementary singlestrand DNA/oligonucleotides or peptide nucleic acids have been used for binding 

DNA/oligonucleotides (3, 35, 42). Antibodies and binding proteins have been used for viruses 

(36) and ATP (37), respectively. 

Good sensitivities have been achieved. 12-mer oligonucleotides have been detected with < 10 

pM sensitivity (3, 42), while DNA has been detected at 10’s of fM (35). Viruses such as 

influenza type A, avian adenovirus group III and avian paramyxovirus have been detected at 1010

–1011 particles/ml with reversible binding on a 20 second to >10 minute time scale (36). ATP 

has been reversibly detected at concentrations at least as low as 100 pM using an Abl protein 

probe (37). 

2.2.7 Selectivity 

Selectivity using the biological probes appears to be excellent. For instance, a 1000 times higher 

12-mer oligonucleotide concentration with a one base pair mismatch only produced a weak 

signal due to nonspecific binding (3). The time constant of the reversibility of the detector 

response is also a measure of the binding kinetics and can be used to distinguish between specific 

and nonspecific binding (35). However, some prepurification may still be advisable. For 

instance, the charge-based DNA detection sensitivity is improved by reducing the ionic 

concentration of the fluid, which reduces the counter-ion screening of the DNA negative charge 

(42). Virus detection was very selective with structurally similar viruses being discriminated by 

the antibody receptors. While short-duration conduction changes occurred due to random 

contact between unspecific viruses and the nanowire, the targeted virus could be identified by the 

duration of the conductivity changes which is related to the virus/antibody binding and 

unbinding kinetics (36). In the case of ATP sensing, it was demonstrated that competitive 

inhibitors could reduce the response of the sensor to ATP. An inhibitor such as Gleevec can do 

so without inducing much of a signal itself as it is uncharged, while ATP is negatively charged 

(37). 

2.2.8 Conclusions 

Both bottom-up and top-down fabrication of n- and p-type Si nanowire sensors has been 

demonstrated. The conventional top-down IC fabrication approach eliminates some of the 

alignment, assembly, and feature pitch issues associated with most bottom-up approaches. Both 

chemresistors and chemFETs have been demonstrated, as have gas and liquid phase sensors. 

The liquid phase sensors frequently incorporate a microfluidic channel to deliver the analyte. 

While the Si nanowire detection mechanism is essentially the same as described for the metal 

12
oxide nanowires above, improved selectivity has been demonstrated with Si nanowires that have 

been functionalized with binding sites for small molecules, large biomolecules (e.g., single 

stranded DNA), and even viruses. Good sensitivities have been achieved with 12-mer 

oligonucleotides being detected with <10 pM sensitivity, while DNA has been detected at 10’s of 

fM. Specific viruses have been detected at 1010-1011 particles/ml. While selectivity using the 

biological probes appears to be excellent, some prepurification may still be advisable. For 

instance, sensitivity is improved by reducing the ionic concentration of the fluid, which reduces 

the counter-ion screening of the analyte’s charge. Prepurification could also reduce competitive 

inhibitors for the sensor binding sites. 

3. Organic Sensors 

3.1 Conducting Polymer Sensors 

3.1.1 Introduction 

The ability to functionalize polymers is a powerful tool for creating materials which are sensitive 

to specific chemical or biological environments (CBE). The final goal of any sensor 

development is to produce a device which shows a signal response to changing CBE. In the case 

of conducting polymers, it is desirable to incorporate a polymer–functional group combination 

into a resistive element whose value changes in a predictable fashion as a function of the 

concentration of a particular chemical of interest (COI). 

As with metal oxide devices, both chemresistors and chemFETs have been demonstrated. 

However, despite the fact that devices have been fabricated which show a resistance response to 

a COI, considerable research in this area remains to be done to realize functional sensor 

platforms. In particular, an improved understanding of the metal-polymer contact is required, 

polymer and functional group combinations must be designed to optimize chemical specificity, 

and theoretical limits to the achievable sensitivity of these devices must be determined. 

3.1.2 Frequently Used Polymers 

Since there is an extensive list of polymer types and functional groups, a nearly infinite number 

of combinations of the two could ultimately be used for detecting a specific COI. This section 

will attempt to summarize the types of polymers which appear more frequently than others in the 

literature. 

Polyanaline has been functionalized to be sensitive to biological agents such as hemoglobin, 

lipids, uric acid, and tryglicerides (4). This polymer can also be electrospun into fibers with 

diameters as small as 15 nm (43). The literature suggests that polyanaline shows potential as a 

single polymer device solution, in contrast to systems where insulating fibers are coated with 

13
films of conducting polymers. One problem with polyanaline fibers is that oxidation effects will 

change electrical properties over time (43). 

Polypyrrole is another polymer which has been successfully functionalized for detection of 

cholesterol, glucose, fructose, and urea, among other analytes (4). However, very little is 

available in the literature about the transport properties of this polymer, and there has been no 

evidence that it has been spun into nano-fibers. However, Covington et al., have shown 

polypyrrole based chemFET response to organic vapors (44), indicating that there is a precedent 

for electrical response to a chemical environment. 

Although oligothiophene appears in only a handful of references, these papers have much more 

detailed data about the performance of actual sensor devices. The work by Crone et al., (45, 46) 

shows transport response in different types of oligothiophene chemFETs to pentanol, butanol and 

nonanol. Their conclusions, based upon the detection of these simple alcohols, is that the longer 

the functional end group on the conducting polymers, the greater the transport response to a 

particular COI. 

Very little information on carrier transport measurements in conducting polymer films as a 

function of chemical exposure was found in the literature. Much more is published regarding 

optical measurement or isotope tracing measurements of chemical adsorption, but no link 

between optical response and transport response is suggested. The papers by Crone and coworkers are an exception, and provide a useful experimental model for testing the utility of 

transport based chemical detectors. Plots of time-dependent current or resistance correlated with 

the introduction of controlled chemical environments are available in their reports (45, 46). 

3.1.3 Detection Mechanisms 

The voltage response under conditions of constant current, or the current response under constant 

bias of a particular device are both related to resistance and its reciprocal, conductance. That is 

why the term ‘transport properties’ has been used rather generally to include all categories of 

electrically probing the conducting polymers. The detection of changing transport properties in a 

particular device is related to the details of the entire sense circuit which is ultimately used to 

convert the device response to a signal which can be processed. 

Of scientific interest are the mechanisms which cause this change in transport properties. 

Conceptually, there are two effects which can alter transport properties in a film. The first is by 

simply altering the number of carriers. When an analyte is absorbed by the conducting polymer, 

the chemical bond between the analyte and the polymer site re-organizes the electron 

configuration in both, and results in a localized change in the amount of carriers available. 

Depending on the details of the reaction, there could either be more carriers, or less, as proposed 

by Covington et al., (47) to explain the response of carbon black composite polymers to chemical 

vapors. 

14
However, Covington and co-workers could not eliminate a second possible mechanism which is 

due to a mechanical change in the polymer film. In this case, the absorbed analyte creates a 

swelling in the polymer. Since transport through conducting polymers is due to wave function 

overlap (48), changes in the intermolecular spacing can have a measurable impact on transport. 

In fact, Torsi et al., were able to correlate the adsorption of pentanol on α,ω-dihexyl-αquarterthiophene with both an increase in film resistance and a morphological change (49). In 

this case, the swelling distorted the grain boundaries enough to disrupt transport. 

It is certainly conceivable that swelling could have the opposite effect, namely closing gaps in a 

film and therefore increasing orbital overlap between molecules of separate grains. In fact, 

Covington et al., report both increased and decreased resistance as a function of polypyrrole 

exposure to toluene and ethanol, respectively (44). However, without corresponding 

morphology data, it is not possible to eliminate one of the two possible mechanisms. 

For sensor device engineering, it will be important to understand the two dominant mechanisms 

relative to the measured response of conducting polymers to analytes. Experiments designed to 

distinctly identify the relevant mechanisms need to include both transport and morphology 

measurements. 

3.1.4 Metal-Polymer Contacts 

While the development of polymers and functionalization groups is typically the domain of 

chemists, the injection of carriers into conducting polymers for the development of electronic 

circuits is still challenging. A review paper by Scott (50) gives a detailed description of the 

physics involved in charge injection into an organic film, emphasizing the challenging fact that 

there is not a well defined Fermi level in the organic. Additionally, it is unclear if the vacuum 

levels align at the surfaces creating a Mott–Schottky interface. Therefore, the charge injection is 

not simply tunneling through a potential, nor does it follow a simple thermionic emission model. 

Rather it is a hybrid process. There is experimental work in the literature which suggests that 

some metal-organic contacts might be better than others. For example, Hosseini et al., have 

achieved ohmic contacts from Pt on MDP,N,N,N',N'-tetra-p-toly-4-4'-biphenyldiamine. The 

ohmic nature of the contact was confirmed both by transport measurements and Kelvin probe 

measurements (51). Chromium was also used in the study, but did not yield an ohmic contact. 

Gold is used as a contact metal in the overwhelming majority of the papers which employ a 

metal–polymer contact, due to the stability of the gold and its resistance to oxidation. However, 

this property may result in the typically observed high contact resistance between the gold 

contacts and the polymer. Certainly the better the chemical adhesion is between the two 

materials, the better the electron state overlap should be and hence the better the contact. An 

improved understanding of the nature of the metal–polymer contact is essential for the 

realization of a functional chemresistor sensor device. 

15
3.1.5 Sensitivity and Selectivity 

The published sensitivities vary widely in the literature. This is due in part to the specific device, 

the measurement method, and the ability to control the concentrations of analytes with which the 

devices are tested. While chemFETs are typically considered more sensitive than chemresistors, 

organic polymer chemresistors have been shown to be sensitive to several hundred ppb for 

ammonia (52). To put into context the level of detection that would be useful for Soldier-borne 

sensors, detecting VX nerve agents at a level of 5 ppm would give the Soldier about 45 min to 

clear the area before a lethal dose was reached (53). In the work by Joseph et al., (52) 

chemresistors made from Au and Pt nanoparticle doped 1,9-nonanedithiol were demonstrated to 

detect ammonia down to 300 ppb. However, those sensors were also sensitive to toluene, water, 

carbon monoxide and ammonia, making them very susceptible to false positive readings. 

Selectivity is a critical element of chemical or biological sensor design. In most cases, 

chemresistors and chemFETs described in the literature have been shown to be sensitive to 

groups of chemicals. For example, Joseph et al., (52) discuss chemresistors sensitive to solvent 

vapors, while Torsi et al., (46) describe devices sensitive to alcohols. Polymers hold great 

promise in the detection of chemical species due to the vast potential for combination of 

polymers and functional groups that may be synthesized. Although high selectivity devices have 

not yet been demonstrated, strong precedent exists within the pharmaceutical industry for 

developing chemicals which are highly targeted. True selectivity may be accomplished not with 

a single device, but rather with an array of devices and proper signal processing. Much like the 

nose of a dog, these arrays may have a number of elements, each sensitive to groups of 

chemicals. By interrogating each of the elements of the array for a positive or negative response, 

the range of possible analytes causing the signal can be narrowed. 

3.1.6 Reliability and Saturation 

The reliability and robustness of a sensor is a critical consideration in the device performance. 

This is particularly important for deployment into the battlefield and operation in life-critical 

conditions. In the case of the chemresistor, the inherent simplicity of the device lends itself to 

being quite robust. Even the chemFETs are very simple by integrated circuit standards and could 

potentially withstand impact. Of primary concern is whether or not the actual detection 

mechanisms can become saturated through exposure, and if so, if it is possible to refresh them. 

Many examples exist for fabricated chemresistors as single-use sensors due to irreversible 

loading. However, there are also examples of chemresistors which refreshed on their own rather 

quickly (54). There is also precedent for devices that did not refresh automatically but could be 

refreshed electronically. In their detection of pentanol with chemFETs, Torsi et al., noted that 

the unassisted refresh rate of their devices was quite poor (46), taking nearly an hour for the 

films to refresh after the pentanol vapor was removed. However, by reverse biasing the gate, the 

chemFET could be refreshed immediately. 

16
The response of each functionalized polymer and analyte combination must be investigated on a 

case by case basis. The precedent for both reversible and irreversible loading is important to 

keep in mind in the development of polymer-based sensor design, as is the demonstration of 

reversal of the loading process for sensors which do not automatically refresh. 

3.1.7 Conclusions 

While the literature reports of chemresistors or chemFETs based on electrical interrogation of 

polymer films or nanofibers is limited, the field is relatively young and the number of polymers 

and functional groups is extensive. Additionally, the electrical measurements reported for these 

materials are not exhaustive. While DC transport measurements on chemresistors present a 

simple approach, limitations of high metal–polymer contact resistance may present a limiting 

factor and warrant a more sophisticated approach to the investigation of polymer sensing 

elements. For example, the use of the polymer as the dielectric in a capacitor may yield a 

capacitance change with analyte concentration that may be more sensitive than a DC transport 

change. Alternatively, alternating current interrogation schemes may be a useful approach. 

3.2 Carbon Nanotube Sensors 

3.2.1 Introduction 

Carbon nanotubes are interesting materials that have the potential to revolutionize electronics, 

with potential applications that range from field emitters to chemical and biological sensors. 

Their exceptional properties – extremely high mobility, small size, and high tensile strength – 

make them ideal 1-D conductors. 

3.2.2 Structure 

A carbon nanotube is made up of a single layer of graphite (called graphene) that rolls up on 

itself into a cylinder. Its structure, including tube diameter and chirality, and electronic 

properties are strongly dependent upon the lattice vectors along which the tube has folded. 

Depending upon this direction, the nanotube will exhibit either metallic or semiconducting 

behavior. A typical single wall carbon nanotube (SWNT) is 1.5 to 5 nm in diameter; however, 

SWNTs can be hundreds of microns or even centimeters long (55). 

In many cases, a nanotube does not consist of one single layer of graphene. Instead, it can be 

composed of many graphene layers or walls and thereby named multiwall carbon nanotubes 

(MWNT). The diameter of MWNTs can range anywhere from 10 to 100 nm. The electronic 

properties of the nanotubes are also influenced by whether the tubes are single or multiwalled. 

Single wall tubes can be either metallic or semiconducting. MWNTs usually exhibit a 

combination of these two properties and therefore are usually considered metallic. 

17
3.2.3 Growth 

Carbon nanotubes can be grown by a variety of methods, including arc-discharge, laser ablation, 

high pressure CO process (HiPCO), and chemical vapor deposition (55-57). Despite the variety 

of these growth methods, the key to carbon nanotube growth lies with the use of a catalyst. The 

catalysts are small metal nanoparticles from which the carbon nanotubes nucleate. The diameter 

of the resulting nanotubes is determined by the diameter of the nanoparticles (57). Nickel and 

cobalt metals have been successfully used for seeding growth; however, the most widely used 

catalyst is iron. The iron catalyst particles are derived from many sources, including ferric 

nitrate (Fe(NO3)3 and ferrocene (Fe(C5H5)2. There are two common methods of introducing the 

catalyst: supported or floating (58). Supported catalyst growth occurs when the catalyst is 

deposited on the substrate and then placed inside the growth vessel. Floating catalyst involves 

the delivery of the catalyst in the vapor phase into the growth chamber. Ferric nitrate is typically 

used as a supported catalyst and ferrocene as a floating one. 

The most common growth method for carbon nanotubes is chemical vapor deposition (CVD) 

(57). For CVD of carbon nanotubes, carbon precursor gases (i.e., methane, ethylene, and/or 

acetylene) and hydrogen are reacted in a furnace at temperatures in excess of 500 °C. Typically, 

multiwall carbon nanotubes are deposited between 550 °C and 750 °C, whereas single wall 

nanotubes require higher temperatures to form, between 800 °C and 1000 °C. Moreover, plasmaenhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) has been developed to enhance the growth of 

carbon nanotubes, in particular multiwall carbon nanotubes. Here, high energy electron impact 

is responsible for activating the gases, whereas thermal energy is used to activate the carbon 

precursor gases in traditional CVD growth (58). Vertically aligned carbon nanotubes are 

typically grown using this method. 

Carbon nanotubes are typically grown in two different configurations - horizontal or vertical. 

The configuration largely depends upon the growth conditions. Horizontally directed carbon 

nanotubes are grown with the long direction of the nanotubes parallel to the substrate surface. 

These are typically deposited by CVD under constant flow at or near atmospheric pressure. 

Horizontal nanotubes can be either single wall or multiwall. Vertical nanotubes are grown under 

a variety of conditions. Typically, they result from conditions of low pressure or no flow. 

Vertical aligned nanotubes have their long tubal direction perpendicular to the substrate surface 

and are almost always multiwalled nanotubes. 

Regardless of growth configuration, the exact growth mechanisms of the carbon nanotubes are 

still not fully understood. What is clear is that the catalyst plays a pivotal role in nanotube 

formation. The initial size of the nanotube is dictated by the size of the catalyst nanoparticle; 

therefore, it plays an important role in establishing whether the tube will be single- or multiwalled. The carbon nanotubes can either grow from the catalyst as the nanoparticle 1) remains 

attached to the substrate (base-type growth mode) or 2) detaches from the substrate and remains 

at the tip of the nanotube (tip-type growth mode) (58). Evidence for both methods has been 

18
observed. Recent work has shed light on how the catalyst aides the formation and development 

of carbon nanotubes. The catalytic reaction between methane and nickel nanoparticles at 500 °C 

was observed by high resolution transmission electron microscopy (59). It was observed that the 

catalyst particles moved with the growing nanotube, indicating that the point of growth occurs at 

the catalyst-tube interface. It was also found that the catalyst itself undergoes a shape 

transformation during growth. The shape transformations of the metal nanoparticle occurred in 

different stages as the catalyst itself became coated with a graphite layer from the decomposition 

of methane. This reshaping promoted the nucleation and growth of the graphene layers of the 

nanotubes (58). Note that, while this growth mechanism has been observed, it may only be valid 

in specific growth conditions and may not represent all carbon nanotube growth conditions. 

3.2.4 Carrier Transport 

The electronic properties of carbon nanotubes are strongly dependent upon their structure. 

Semiconducting single wall carbon nanotubes have a band gap of ~0.5 eV. The band gap of 

carbon nanotubes is inversely proportional to the tube diameter (56). They are typically p-type 

(or hole doped) due to the presence of adsorbed molecular oxygen on the surface (55, 56). 

Semiconducting carbon nanotubes exhibit excellent transport properties, with measured 

mobilities as large as 79,000 cm2

/Vs (60). Metallic nanotubes are insensitive to gate voltages 

applied by an electrode. Small changes in the Fermi level do not significantly alter the 

conductance through the metallic tubes. 

3.2.5 Detection Mechanisms 

The detection mechanism for carbon nanotube based sensors is physisorption or chemisorption 

of atoms, molecules, and/or large chemical compounds onto the CNT surface. Upon adsorption, 

a change in the electrical conduction of the device is observed. Although the exact mechanism 

responsible for this conduction change is still unknown, there are two main mechanisms 

proposed to describe this phenomenon. The first possibility is that analyte adsorption on the 

nanotubes affects the dielectric constant of the carbon nanotubes (61, 62). The conduction 

change arises in order to balance out the added/reduced charge of the device. The second 

proposed mechanism involves charge transfer from the adsorbed molecule to the nanotube which 

causes changes in the electrical conduction (61, 63, 64). Charge transfer is thought to occur 

either through direct interaction between the adsorbed analyte and the CNT or through 

electrostatic effects via an intermediary charged species on the CNT and/or surrounding 

substrate. The charge transfer mechanism is strongly dependent upon the chemical nature of the 

adsorbed species. This dependence is exemplified in the work by Kong et al., using p-type 

SWNT-based sensors to detect nitric oxide (NO2) and ammonia (NH3) gases (64). NO2, a strong 

oxidizer, is believed to attract electrons from the carbon nanotubes, thus leaving more holes in 

the SWNTs for additional conduction. However, NH3 is believed to either bind to the hydroxyl 

groups on the SiO2 substrate or another species present, such as preadsorbed oxygen on the 

CNTs, which can partially neutralize the charge transfer to the nanotubes. Note that the SWNT 

19
field effect transistor based sensors (or chemFETs) exhibited a higher sensitivity to NO2 than to 

NH3. 

One key issue for electrical conduction in CNT-based sensors is the metal-carbon nanotube 

interface. The role electrical conduction at the metal-CNT interface plays on chemical sensing 

was qualified by Chen et al., by comparing CNT devices under three different configurations: 

1) no passivation, 2) metal electrode passivation, and 3) electrode and CNT passivation (61). 

Under no passivation, the chemFETs showed significant conduction changes due to protein 

adsorption. To isolate protein adsorption at the metal electrodes from that along the carbon 

nanotubes, the metal electrodes were coated with a biocompatible polymer known for repelling 

proteins. Subsequent experiments, performed under the same conditions, showed no 

conductance change due to protein exposure even though AFM images revealed protein 

adsorption on the carbon nanotubes. Moreover, with both electrodes and carbon nanotubes 

passivated, no conduction changes were observed. The results of this experiment suggest that 

conduction changes are dominated by chemical adsorption effects at the metal-carbon nanotube 

interface and not on the carbon nanotube surface itself. It is believed that adsorption at the 

metal-CNT interface acts equivalently to a reduction of the metal work function, thus changing 

the nature of contacts and conduction of the device. 

3.2.6 Chem/Bio Sensors 

Carbon nanotubes offer many advantages over conventional gas sensors (62-69). Although 

semiconducting metal oxide based sensors are highly sensitive, they require high operating 

temperature (200 °C – 600 °C) in order to maintain high sensitivity levels (1 - 10 ppm range) 

(62, 65, 66). Polymer-based sensors have been observed to offer short response and recovery 

times; however, the materials to be sensed must be in the liquid state (62, 66). Conducting 

composite-based materials suffer from limited sensitivity (62). Carbon nanotube based sensors 

can be operated at room temperature, offer greater conductivities, have faster response times, and 

are sensitive to a larger range of chemicals than traditional gas detectors. 

Carbon nanotubes can be potentially used in a wide variety of chemical, gas, and biological 

detecting sensors. Typically, most sensor applications fall into the chemresistor realm. Carbon 

nanotube chemresistors fall into two different categories (58). The first type uses carbon 

nanotubes in a “bulk”-type application. The carbon nanotubes are typically used as a filler 

material in composite materials – so called nanocomposites. The second category uses the 

carbon nanotube itself as the individual sensing element for the device. The differences between 

the two device types are discussed below. 

3.2.6.1 Nanocomposites 

The mixing of carbon nanotubes with traditional bulk materials has led to the development of 

nanocomposite materials. They have been shown to improve the mechanical, optical, and 

electrical properties of the matrix materials. For nanocomposite chemresistors, the matrix 

20
material is typically polymer-based, although, other materials, such as tin oxide, have been used 

to make sensors. For these nanocomposite devices, the carbon nanotubes are primarily used to 

increase the conductivity of the materials. Both single wall and multiwall CNTs can be used. 

Generally, the matrix material detects the analyte of interest, and the carbon nanotubes 

embedded in the matrix act as conduction pathways from the matrix to the metal electrodes. A 

variety of chemicals and biological compounds have been detected using these nanocomposite 

devices. 

Chemical sensors of various device architectures and matrix materials have been fabricated using 

nanocomposite materials. One such sensor uses functionalized CNT/PMMA 

(polymethylmethacrylate) dip-coated films, deposited between two interdigital electrodes, as 

chemresistors (69). The electrical response of the chemresistor was measured as the device was 

exposed to different solvent vapors inside a gas chamber. Initial resistance values ranged 

between 14,000 and 45,000 kΩ. Increases in resistance – 100 to 1000 times initial values – were 

observed when exposed to dichloromethane, choloroform, and acetone vapors. The fCNT/PMMA chemresistors showed fast response times (<1s for dichloromethane, ~1s for 

acetone), and initial output levels were obtained almost immediately upon removal of the solvent 

vapor. Additionally, the chemresistor was connected to a wireless communication system, and 

the device behavior was monitored remotely by a nearby computer. 

Low resistance gas sensors have been fabricated from multiwall carbon nanotubes/tin oxide 

mixtures (70). The MWNT/SnO2 mixture was deposited on a ceramic tube between platinum 

electrodes and tested for its electrical response to NO, NO2, ethanol and acetylene. A change in 

resistance was detected for nitric oxide levels as low as 2 ppm. The resistance for NO2 was 

230 kΩ at 2 ppm and increased to 2.8 MΩ at 50 ppm. Resistance changes were also observed for 

ethanol and acetylene levels as low as 10 ppm. In fact, the resistance actually decreased as the 

gas concentrations increased. The resistance of the sensor when exposed to 10 ppm of ethanol 

was 71 kΩ. It decreased to 23 kΩ when exposed to 1000 ppm of ethanol. The resistance 

increase or decrease corresponds to whether the gas is oxidizing (NO, NO2) or reducing (ethanol, 

acetylene), respectively. The gas detection mechanism for this sensor is the interaction between 

the tin oxide nanograins and the adsorbed molecules (see the metal oxide section for more 

details). The MWNTs serve as low resistance, metal-like conductive pathways for electron 

transport away from the tin oxide nanograins. 

3.2.6.2 Carbon Nanotube Sensing Devices 

In contrast to the nanocomposites, the next class of chemresistor sensors uses carbon nanotubes 

as the actual sensing element. The analyte species is adsorbed onto the carbon nanotube either 

by chemical bonding or physical attraction. Upon adsorption, a change in electrical conduction 

through the nanotubes is observed due to charge transfer, capacitive changes, or some other 

mechanism. The geometry of the chemresistor sensor devices is largely dependent upon whether 

21
the sensing elements are arrays/bundles of carbon nanotubes or individual single-/multi-wall 

carbon nanotubes. 

Arrays and/or bundles of carbon nanotubes have been used for chemresistor devices (63, 67, 71, 

72). Typically, metal electrodes, usually platinum (Pt), are lithographically defined on a 

substrate. The carbon nanotubes are then deposited onto the electrodes via CVD, PECVD, or 

dip/drop-coating from a CNT-solvent solution. Valentini et al., fabricated nitric oxide 

chemresistor sensors and were able to detect changes in resistance for gas concentrations as low 

as 5 ppb NO2 (72). It was observed that the more defective nanotubes achieved greater 

sensitivities to the gas molecules than non-defective nanotubes. Lu et al., fabricated a 

chemresistor that used palladium (Pd) nanoparticle loaded SWNT bundles as the sensing element 

for methane detection (63). The Pd-loaded SWNTs were drop-coated onto interdigitated 

electrodes. The Pd nanoparticles increased the sensitivity of the device by assisting in the charge 

transfer between the adsorbed methane molecule and the carbon nanotube. Slight changes in 

current were detected as the sensor was exposed to methane gas in concentrations from 6 to 

100 ppm; however, the magnitude of the change did not scale with concentration. Both sensors 

were unable to recover to baseline values after exposure to the gas analyte. 

Carbon nanotubes can also serve as the channel in a chemFET structure. In this case the 

nanotube is connected to two metal electrodes which act as the source and drain of the transistor. 

The carbon nanotube FETs are fabricated in two different ways. Typically, carbon nanotubes are 

grown first, then electrodes are fabricated using standard lithography techniques on top of the 

CNTs (61, 64, 73). However, there have been “quasi-successful” attempts to first deposit the 

electrodes, then grow the carbon nanotubes tubes across the metal electrodes (74, 75). 

Once fabricated, the chemFETs could be tested in either air, usually for the detection of gases 

and chemicals, or in liquid, usually for the detection of biological based compounds. Star et al., 

developed a chemFET that was functionalized with an ion-exchange Nafion polymer to act as a 

humidity detector (73). It was shown that the modulation (expressed as the ratio between the 

“on” and “off” source-drain current at –10 V and +10 V gate voltages) of the devices approached 

zero when the humidity levels reached 27% and higher. Chen et al., used a similar geometry to 

explore the sensing mechanism of carbon nanotubes to protein adsorption (61). The SWNTs 

were contacted using two electrodes and submerged into a liquid solution. A Pt wire was 

inserted into the solvent and acted as the gate. With no protective coatings applied to the device, 

a change in the drain-source current was detected when exposed to a variety of proteins. By 

varying the gate voltage, the conductance of the device was modulated from ~230 nA to near 

depletion (zero conductance). No change in current was detected for similar devices when both 

the contact metal and the metal/carbon nanotube interfaces were coated. SWNT chemFETs 

fabricated by Kong et al., were found to be extremely sensitive to NO2 and NH3 (64). Upon 

exposure to NO2, the conductance of the devices increased by three orders of magnitude. 

22
3.2.6.3 Electrochemical Sensors 

Carbon nanotubes can also detect biomolecules electrochemically, by enhancing their 

electrochemical reactivity (76-92). Nanotubes are especially attractive for this role because of 

their extremely small size, high surface area, high conductivity, and their exceptional chemical 

and biochemical stability (76, 78, 82). They are usually configured as high-density CNT arrays, 

each nanotube modified with distinct chemical or biomolecular recognition elements, and in 

close proximity to a physical transducer. The goal, then, is to convert the selective chemical or 

biological recognition event into a useful electrical signal. Generally speaking, CNTs play a dual 

role in a biosensor, both as immobilization matrices and as an electron mediator, carrying charge 

to the transducing electrode (76). According to Wang (76), they can also promote electron 

transfer reactions, particularly in proteins, even when the redox center is buried deep within the 

glycoprotein shell. This feature is quite important, since the electron transfer step in 

electrochemistry can typically only occur for species within 1 nanometer of an electrode surface. 

The review paper by Wang (76) has an excellent description of the variety of CNT-based 

electrochemical sensors that have been recently studied. CNT-based enzyme electrodes have 

been fabricated by casting solubilized CNT solutions onto an electrode surface, by selfassembling or growing (85) short aligned SWNTs perpendicular to an electrode surface, and by 

preparing CNT-based biocomposite electrodes including screen-printed CNT-based inks. 

Li et al., (79) and Tu et al., (93) have shown recent success in developing CNT nanoelectrode 

arrays for biosensing. While many CNT sensor arrays use randomly oriented mats of CNTs with 

a large 3-D exposed surface area, Li et al., argue that, for many applications, including 

ultrasensitive electroanalysis, the electrode area should be minimized, since noise comes from 

the capacitative charging-discharging current which is proportional to electrode area. They first 

deposit a metal contact plane, then an ultrathin catalyst film to grow an aligned array of short 

(~5 microns) nanotubes, then a SiO2 layer to encapsulate them. A chemical-mechanical 

polishing (CMP) step then reveals and opens the CNTs. By carefully controlling these steps, a 

low-density array of MWNTs (~107

 CNTs/cm2) is created. The open nanotube ends are finally 

terminated with a carboxylic group to serve as chemically active sensor sites, and can be 

functionalized later by amine-terminated biomolecules through amide bonds to the carboxylic 

groups. Li et al., point out that the ideal array is relatively low density, with an inter-element 

distance greater than the width of the diffusion layer at each element, yielding a steady-state 

diffusion-limited current mode. Tu et al., (93) reported using a similar approach, but spun on an 

epoxy resin instead of depositing SiO2. 

3.2.6.4 Other Sensor Devices 

Although chemresistors are the most widely fabricated sensors using carbon nanotubes, there are 

other device types that are currently being explored as CNT gas sensors. One such device type is 

CNT-based resonators. A shift in the resonance frequency of the device is measured upon 

exposure to the gas analyte. Carbon nanotubes, either in a mat form or as a nanocomposite, are 

23
used as the individual sensing element. Chopra et al., fabricated a CNT resonant circuit sensor 

for ammonia detection (66). Single and/or multiwall carbon nanotubes were coated on top of a 

circular copper disk using epoxy. A decrease in resonant frequency (3–5 MHz) upon the 

exposure of ammonia was detected for both the SWNT and MWNT resonators, although the 

SWNT-based sensors showed greater sensitivity than the MWNT-based one. For both resonator 

types, the magnitude of the frequency shift increased with increasing ammonia concentrations. It 

is believed that a dielectric constant change is responsible for the resonant frequency shift. 

Penza et al., also used the resonator approach for fabrication of alcohol sensors (65). Here, 

Langmuir-Blodgett films or mats of single wall carbon nanotubes were deposited on quartz 

crystal microbalance sensors. Upon exposure to vapor pressures of ethanol and methanol at 

59 mm Hg, frequency shifts in the 100 s of hertz were detected. Unfortunately, saturation effects 

for the sensors were observed at higher vapor pressures. 

Gas ionization sensors are another potential application for carbon nanotubes. They work by 

generating strong electric fields at a sharp tip (typically metal) that causes the breakdown of gas 

molecules. Carbon nanotubes are advantageous relative to traditional metals because they can 

generate high electric fields at low applied voltages. Different approaches have been taken to 

fabricate CNT-based field ionization gas detectors. One approach involved growing multiwall 

carbon nanotubes by catalytic decomposition of acetylene onto a stainless steel wire (94). At 

applied voltages of 7.5 or 8 kV, helium detection was observed at count rates two orders of 

magnitude greater than background. In another approach, Modi et al., fabricated a gas ionization 

sensor able to detect and distinguish between different gases, such as helium, argon, air, carbon 

dioxide, nitrogen, oxygen, and even ammonia (95). The device is made using two electrodes 

separated by a glass insulator. An aluminum plate acts as the cathode, and vertically aligned 

MWNTs grown on top of a silicon substrate act as the anode. Unlike typical chemresistors 

which rely on the absorption/desorption of the gas species, the breakdown voltage of the device, 

when exposed to the analyte, acts as a unique fingerprint for the gas to be identified. At 

breakdown, the magnitude of the device discharge current can be correlated to the relative 

concentration of the analyte. The breakdown voltage for the device is also dependent upon the 

separation between the two electrodes. 

3.2.7 Sensitivity 

Thus far, carbon nanotube based sensors have been used to detect a wide variety of gases, 

chemicals, biological compounds and proteins. Inert gases, such as helium, argon, and nitrogen, 

and organic vapors, such as ethanol, methanol, and acetone, have been tested. The presence and 

concentration modulations of glucose, hormones, and other proteins in buffer solutions have also 

been observed (61, 71). Many of these chemicals have been successfully detected by multiple 

CNT-based sensor configurations. Each gas sensor type has advantages and disadvantages that 

affect its performance. Factors such as response time, sensitivity, and reversibility, ultimately 

determine the gas level detection limits as well as the effectiveness of the sensors. The detection 

levels of the sensors varied widely for the analytes tested. 

24
In order to quantify the effectiveness of the CNT-based sensors, the term sensitivity is defined as 

the ratio of the resistance after exposure and before exposure (Rafter/Rbefore). For conditions 

where the conductance increases upon exposure, the sensitivity definition is reversed 

(Rbefore/Rafter). Sensitivities between 3 and 1000 were achieved for the sensors discussed above. 

ChemFETs made from individual SWNTs showed very high sensitivities, with values ranging 

between 10 and 1000, depending upon the analyte (64). When exposed to 200 ppm NO2, 

chemFET sensitivities of 1000 were obtained (64). Unlike typical metal oxide based sensors 

which require high operating temperatures (250 °C), these devices have the advantage of room 

temperature operation. Chemresistors have also been shown to exhibit a wide range of 

sensitivities, which strongly depend upon the concentration and type of the gas analyte (67, 69, 

70, 72). For example, a SnO2/MWNT nanocomposite showed sensitivity values between 2 to 20 

for NO2 concentrations between 2 and 50 ppm, respectively (70). The same nanocomposite 

sensor registered a sensitivity value of only 6 when exposed to 1000 ppm of ethanol. Bulk 

SWNT mats, grown by laser ablation, only showed sensitivity values of approximately 2 when 

exposed to a 200 ppm flow of NO2 (64). The large difference in sensitivities between the bulk 

mat and the chemFET values is attributed to the difference between the amounts of carbon 

nanotube surface area exposed to gas analyte. 

As mentioned above, the gas analyte does play a role in determining the sensitivity of the 

sensors. A difference in response has been observed for polar versus nonpolar molecules as well 

as oxidizing versus reducing gases (66, 69, 70). A CNT/PMMA nanocomposite chemresistor 

showed a strong sensitivity to dichloromethane, choloroform, and acetone with values ranging 

from 84 to 809; however, no electric response was detected when exposed to toluene and hexane 

(69). For this device, the selectivity was thought to originate with the PMMA and not the carbon 

nanotubes. The solubility of the chemicals in PMMA was found to be the strongest factor in 

whether a substantial resistance change was observed. For the resonator-based sensors, a larger 

shift in the resonance frequency was observed when exposed to polar gases, such as carbon 

monoxide and ammonia, than when the sensor was exposed to nonpolar gases, such as helium 

and argon (68). Because the frequency shift is related to the dielectric constant, it was found that 

the magnitude of the shift scales with the dipole moment of the gas. Even the chemFETs showed 

sensitivity preferences among analytes. ChemFETs that demonstrated sensitivity values of 1000 

when exposed to 200 ppm NO2 only exhibited values between 10 to 100 when exposed to 1% 

NH3 in air/argon (64). It is believed that two different sensing mechanisms are responsible for 

the difference. 

Another factor that affects sensor detection is the response time. The response time is typically 

defined as the time duration for the resistance to change by one order of magnitude. The 

response time for the sensors is strongly dependent upon the concentration of the analyte. For 

example, SWNT chemFETs exhibited responses times of 600 sec, 60 sec, and 2 to 10 sec when 

exposed to 2, 20, and 200 ppm NO2, respectively (64). These times are similar to those exhibited 

25
by other carbon nanotube based sensors and are comparable to high performance metal oxide 

detectors, which have response times of ~50 sec. 

The biggest issue affecting the sensitivity of the gas detectors is reversibility. Reversibility is 

defined as the ability of the sensor to recover to baseline (pre-exposure) values after exposure to 

the gas analyte. A majority of the carbon nanotube based sensors discussed here exhibited 

irreversibility. For example, the SWNT chemFETs exhibited recovery times of ~12 hours after 

exposure to NO2 (64). Chopra et al., initially reported that the CNT-epoxy resonators were able 

to recover in only 10 minutes; however, these resonators were only sensitive to ammonia and not 

the inert gases (66). In fact, the only CNT-based sensors that exhibited strong reversibility were 

the nanocomposite chemresistors. This is most likely due to the fact that the carbon nanotubes in 

the nanocomposites are primarily used for electric conduction and not for chemical sensing. 

One assumption plaguing the irreversibility of the devices is that the pre-exposure state of the 

carbon nanotubes is pristine (i.e., free of any adsorbed species). Valentini et al., fabricated and 

tested vertically aligned MWNT-based chemresistors at NO2 concentrations between 5 ppb to 

500 ppb at 165 °C (72). Although resistance changes due to nitric oxide exposure were 

observed, the baseline (no gas exposure) resistance level of the device steadily increased or 

decreased throughout the entire experiment. In the CNT-epoxy resonators discussed previously, 

no resonant frequency shift was observed when exposed to inert gases, such as helium, argon, or 

nitrogen; however, upon high temperature vacuum annealing, these devices exhibited frequency 

shifting when exposed to the inert gases (66, 68). For both of these devices, residual adsorbates 

present on the sensors prevented the sensors from achieving their full sensitivity. 

The solution to the irreversibility problem is to remove any adsorbed analyte from the carbon 

nanotube. Carbon nanotubes are ideal candidates for sensors because they adsorb, physically or 

chemically, a wide array of gases, chemicals, elements, biological compounds, and proteins. In 

fact, the carbon nanotubes readily adsorb oxygen. Removal of any residual adsorbates on the 

carbon nanotubes must be performed before and after exposure to guarantee the maximum 

sensitivity possible. Carbon nanotube adsorbates are typically removed either by annealing, 

vacuum treating, or ultraviolet (UV) light exposure. ChemFETs recovered in ~1 hour after 

heating in air at 200 °C (as compared to the ~12 hour recovery time at room temperature) (64). 

Pd loaded chemresistors, tested for methane, were exposed to UV light for 30 minutes (63). The 

energy of the UV light was able to speed up the desorption of the gas molecules on the CNT 

surface. The UV light drastically increased the resistance of the sensor, exceeding even preexposure resistance values. 

CNT-based electrochemical sensors have been shown to be remarkably sensitive to species such 

as glucose, fructose, lactate, polyphenols, ethanol, organophosphate pesticides, trace toxic 

metals, urea, cholesterol, penicillin, hormones, neurotransmitters, and DNA (76-79, 81, 83, 84, 

86, 89, 91). Generally speaking, the electrochemically detected products are often NADH or 

hydrogen peroxide, whose detection limits are currently on the order of 100 nM (76). As a 

26
biosensor, CNT-based setups have detected DNA sequences consisting of fewer than 1000 

strands (79). As a chemical sensor, detection limit down to a few nM has been demonstrated for 

benchmark species K4Fe(CN)6, which is 100-1000 times better response than conventional 

electrodes (79). One reason for the excellent sensitivity, as well as response time of CNT-based 

electrochemical sensors, is the small nanotube radius, which leads to a high signal-to-noise ratio 

and a lower RC time constant (79). In the detection of liberated NADH, CNT-based biosensors 

are resistant to surface fouling associated with NADH oxidation, unlike other techniques, and so 

have high stability (76). The nanoelectrode array developed by Li (79), however, suffers from a 

type of reversibility problem. Biomolecules have a strong nonspecific adsorption on SiO2

surfaces, and SiO2 fills 99% of the space surrounding the nanotube electrodes in their arrays. As 

a result, a rigorous time-consuming washing must be done between measurements. Their 

solution has been to apply an organic passivation layer to the SiO2 areas, so that the nanotubes 

themselves present the only active sites. 

3.2.8 Selectivity 

As mentioned previously, carbon nanotubes can be used for sensing a wide range of gases, 

chemicals, and biological compounds. While this makes carbon nanotubes attractive for a 

number of applications, this diversity can be a hindrance when a specific chemical detector is 

desired. The selectivity of the carbon nanotubes must be improved in order to make these 

devices into reliable and chemical specific detectors. There are two approaches to solving the 

selectivity issues with carbon nanotubes. The first approach involves creating devices that avoid 

this issue. For example, the gas ionization sensor proposed by Modi et al., operates on the 

principle of gas electric field breakdown and does not require any special treatment of the 

nanotubes (95). The second approach involves functionalization of the carbon nanotubes. 

Functionalization involves the chemical modification of the carbon nanotube surface by 

chemically attaching a molecule that bonds with specific chemicals. Covalent attachment to the 

carbon nanotube involves changing the bonding structure from sp2 to sp3 and has proven to be 

difficult due to the inertness of the CNT (56). The resulting loss of CNT double-bond 

conjugation is electronically undesirable, resulting in detrimental effects on carrier transport 

(56). Functionalization of the tubes via noncovalent forces, such as Van der Waals forces, has 

proven to be the most successful method in functionalizing CNTs and gaining species selectivity 

as well as increased sensitivity (56). Direct functionalization of the sidewalls has been 

performed using different chemistries, including fluorination, chlorination, and oxidation and by 

the attachment of various chemical groups, such as atomic hydrogen, aromatic groups, and esters 

(56, 96). Specific functional groups are designed to attach specific compounds and repel others. 

Functionalization of carbon nanotubes has been performed for two main reasons. The first 

reason is to facilitate the carbon-polymer bond in nanocomposite materials and to promote 

conduction between the polymeric materials and the carbon nanotubes. In one study, this effect 

was explored using three similar sensing materials - 1) the polymer polythiophene (poly[3-(2-

27
hydroxyethyl)-2,5-thienylene] or PHET, 2) a CNT/PHET composite, and 3) a composite of the 

polymer PHET and MWNTs functionalized with PHET (97). The room temperature electrical 

conductivity of the PHET, CNT/PHET, and CNT- f-PHET were 10–8, 1.38, and 38 S cm 

respectively. It is believed that the conductivity differences between the samples are due either 

to an increased charge transfer interaction between the CNT and PHET, especially with 

functionalization, or to an increased homogeneity between the f-CNT and polymer matrix than in 

the CNT/PHET composites. The functionalization of carbon nanotubes with polymers has also 

been used to obtain n-type FETs that are stable in air (56). 

The second reason for functionalization is to immobilize and detect the presence of biological 

compounds and proteins. It has been shown that many types of proteins adsorb onto carbon 

nanotubes via nonspecific binding (61, 71, 98). Functionalization can be used to detect a wide 

range of biological compounds, proteins, or a specific biochemical. Lin et al., were able to 

functionalize carbon nanotube tips with glucose detecting enzymes via “carbodiimide chemistry 

by forming amide linkages between amine residues and carboxylic acid groups” (71). The 

electrochemical-based biosensor was able to detect the presence of glucose even in the presence 

of interferents, such as acetaminophen and ascorbic acids. Biospecific pairs are also used for 

selective biomolecular detection. For example, Chen et al., were able to make CNT sensors for 

the detection of hormones via the antigen/antibody binding pair (61). In particular, carbon 

nanotubes were functionalized by adsorption of a hCG antigen. hCG - human chorionic 

gonadotropin - is a hormone produced in women during pregnancy and is used in clinical tests 

for detection and determination of pregnancy. Once adsorbed with the hCG antigen, no 

conduction change was exhibited upon exposure to other structurally similar hormones, such as 

rabbit pregnancy hormones. However, a signal change proportional to concentration was 

observed when exposed to the α-hCG antibody, indicating successful binding. 

3.2.9 Conclusions 

A number of papers have been published on sensors using carbon nanotubes. In general, it is the 

matrix material or overlayer on the nanotubes which actually detects the analyte of interest, and 

this induces a change in conduction in the nanotubes themselves. In at least some cases, more 

defective nanotubes have been demonstrated to achieve greater sensitivities to analytes than nondefective nanotubes. Carbon nanotube adsorbates are typically removed either by annealing, 

vacuum treating, or UV light exposure. 

Of the problems observed, the lack of reversibility may be the most significant and pervasive. In 

fact, the only CNT-based sensors that exhibited strong reversibility were the nanocomposite 

chemresistors. This seems to be due to the CNT’s limited role in those devices of electric 

conduction and not chemical sensing. There were also reports of nonlinearity, where the 

magnitude of a change did not scale with the concentration of the analyte. In a report on a CNTbased humidity detector, it was shown that the on/off modulation approached zero when the 

28
humidity levels reached 27% and higher. Such restricted performance is insufficient for typical 

sensor requirements. 

4. Summary 

Since chemical adsorption depends on surface area, and power consumption is directly related to 

the size of the device, small devices with large surface areas are desirable for use in autonomous 

chemical sensors that can provide both the Army as well as civilian homeland security entities 

with a distinct strategic advantage. Nanoscale materials and devices hold promise because they 

possess surface area to volume ratios that are impossible to achieve in bulk materials. Research 

in the area of nanoelectronic devices for chemical sensing is in its relative infancy, and is an 

active area which has increased dramatically in the past decade. Although in general, nanoscale 

sensors have as yet demonstrated limited selectivity to a specific analyte, organic and inorganic 

nanowire devices have shown sensitivity to large groups, or classes, of chemicals. This is 

promising evidence, and suggests pathways for continued research to achieve the goal of viable 

sensor platforms. While efforts to engineer the devices and the sensing materials to be more 

selective will continue, the selectivity of some or all of the approaches described in this report 

could be further enhanced by using an array of different sensors with more intricate interrogation 

algorithms to determine the analyte responsible for a signal with greater precision. 

Response times in the tens of seconds and recovery times as low as one minute have been 

reported for nanowire sensors, comparing favorably to those reported for bulk and thin film 

sensors. With anticipated advances in nanoscale circuit design and technology, the time 

constants for nanowire sensing devices have the potential to improve dramatically over current 

bulk and thin film sensors. UV light, elevated temperatures and strong gate pulses may be 

integrated into device designs to improve refresh rates for the nanowire sensor platforms. 

However, the effects of these reset mechanisms in terms of irreversible damage to the nanoscale 

active sensing element will need to be investigated and understood in the context of their reduced 

scale. Single wire and multiple wire devices have been demonstrated, and are anticipated to 

have distinct application areas. Single wire devices promise the fastest speeds and lowest power 

consumption while holding the potential for single molecule detection, making them candidates 

for high precision sensing applications. Multiple wire devices may be more reliable and robust 

in addition to being easier to fabricate, and may be most useful in pre-screening or disposable 

sensing applications. 

While the field of nanoelectronic sensing is currently in the realm of basic research, it is prudent 

to look forward to a number of technological issues that must be addressed for nanoelectronic 

sensing technology to become viable. These include stability of the nanowire active element and 

the sensing circuit as a whole, contact effects, packaging design, power requirements, and 

reproducibility. Fabrication requirements dictate the need to align, self-assemble or selectively 

29
grow nanowires for economical integration into device and circuit architectures. Contact and 

interface technology must be understood at the atomic level to ensure reliable transport in the 

nanowire sensor element and maximize signal to noise ratio in the device. Analyte sensing 

mechanisms for a particular nanowire approach must be well understood, since multiple reaction 

pathways available to an analyte will complicate the calculation of surface concentration from 

the measured conductance, thus reducing both sensitivity and selectivity. Circuit designs must 

be developed to capitalize on the potential of nanowire sensing elements, and to overcome any of 

their potential limitations, e.g., by building in redundancy and fault tolerance. Fluidic delivery 

mechanisms and thermal management will be critical elements of packaging design, especially 

for discrete nanowire devices. 

30
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