Preparation and gas-sensing characteristics of nanocrystalline spinel zinc ferrite thin films

Zinc ferrite is a promising sensor material. In this paper, thin films of nanocrystalline zinc ferrite were deposited on alumina substrates by nebulization of a 0.01-M solution of a mixture of ZnCL2 and FeCl3 in ethanol (Zn:Fe=1:2) followed by pyrolysis and annealing in flowing air. The resulting films were characterized by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy, and the gas-sensing properties of as-deposited films were also investigated.