Adsorption-controlled transition of the electrical properties realized in Hematite (alpha-Fe₂O₃) nanorods ethanol sensing

Alpha-Fe₂O₃ nanorods are synthesized through a hydrothermal method with no surfactant introduced and ethanol sensors are fabricated from these nanorods. The device can respond to ethanol vapour in a concentration range from 1 to 1500 parts per million and shows both p-type and n-type responding characteristics during the investigation of the ethanol sensing. The sensor displays a p-type characteristic when the ethanol concentration is low and converted into an n-type characteristic as the concentration exceeds a certain value. Such a phenomenon is attributed to the chemisorbed oxygen, which leads to different modifications of the energy band at the surface, namely, depletion layer or inversion layer.