One-pot synthesis of Au-loaded SnO2 nanofibers and their gas sensing properties

A novel one-pot synthesis method is used to prepare Au-loaded SnO2 nanofibers. The method combines the sol-gel and the electrospinning techniques in which the reduction process by ultraviolet exposure is included for in situ growth of Au nanoparticles in the electrospinning solution. Chemical gas sensors are fabricated by the use of the synthesized Au-loaded SnO2 nanofibers. According to the sensing measurements, the loading of Au significantly upgrades the sensing ability to CO in terms of response and selectivity. The optimization of content of Au nanoparticles incorporated in SnO2 nanofibers is likely to be a key parameter to maximize the sensing ability. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.