Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) sensing performance of electron beam irradiated chemically deposited TiO2 thin films

We report on the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) sensing performance of high energy (7 MeV) electron beam irradiated chemically deposited nanocrystalline TiO2 thin films. The results of X-ray diffraction suggest that the electron beam irradiation leads to improved crystallinity. The occurrence of grain growth after electron beam irradiation was observed due to coalescence. The electron beam irradiated TiO2 thin films were hydrophilic with water contact angle of about 9 degrees. The LPG sensing performance of pristine and electron beam irradiated TiO2 films was investigated at different operating temperatures and LPG concentrations. After irradiation, the LPG response of 27.45% for pristine TiO2 film was increased to 38.70% upon exposure of 5200 ppm LPG. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.