Fabrication of a graphene field effect transistor array on microchannels for ethanol sensing

A new approach to the fabrication of back-gated graphene FET (field effect transistor) arrays on microchannels was investigated. Narrow walls fabricated on a substrate with SU-8 (a negative photoresist), with top metal electrodes were pressed onto another silicon/SiO2 substrate with predeposited graphene pieces such that the electrodes came into contact with graphene pieces and formed the source and drain contact. The SU-8 narrow walls with the top metal layer were fabricated by the conventional lift-off process. The graphene pieces were reduced chemically from graphite oxide. The I-DS changed immediately by more than 17% when the device was exposed to an ethanol atmosphere. The current recovered very well after the ethanol gas was pumped out. The SU-8 microchannels served as gas flow passages that helped the ethanol vapor reach the sensitive region of the device: the graphene channel. This work provides a convenient way of constructing back-gated graphene FETs for sensing applications. This method could potentially be scaled up for mass production. (C) 2011 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.