Revisiting the factors influencing gold electrodes prepared using cyclic voltammetry

Gold is widely used as the electrode material in different chemi-and biosensing applications while cyclic voltammetry (CV) in sulfuric acid solutions is a commonly employed method for gold surface preparation and characterization. However, as shown herein, chloride leakage from the Ag/AgCl/sat. KCl reference electrode and platinum dissolution from the platinum counter electrode can severely compromise the reproducibility and hence the reliability of the prepared gold electrodes. The aim of this work is to obtain a comprehensive understanding of the separate and interdependent effects of the aforementioned factors on the voltammetric behavior of microfabricated polycrystalline gold electrodes. It is shown that the leakage of chloride gives rise to etching of both the gold working and the platinum counter electrodes and that the chloride concentration has a strong influence on the ratio between the obtained gold and platinum concentrations in the electrolyte. The dissolved gold and platinum are then re-deposited on the gold electrode on the cathodic voltammetric scan, changing the structure and properties of the electrode. It is also demonstrated that the changes in the properties of the gold electrode are determined by the ratio between the co-deposited platinum and gold rather than the absolute amount of platinum deposited on the gold electrode. In addition, the chloride and sulfate adsorption behavior on the gold electrode is carefully investigated. It is proposed that redox peaks due to the formation of the corresponding Au(I) complexes can be seen in the double layer region of the voltammogram. The results show that the chloride leakage from the reference electrode needs to be carefully controlled and that platinum counter electrodes should be avoided when developing gold sensing electrodes. The present comprehensive understanding of the electrochemical performance of gold electrodes prepared using CV should be of significant importance in conjunction with both fundamental investigations and practical applications.