Promotion on Acetone Sensing of Single SnO2 Nanobelt by Eu Doping

SnO2 nanobelts (NBs) have unique structural and functional properties which attract great attention in gas detecting. In this work, Eu doping is adopted to improve the gas sensitivity of pure SnO2, especially to enhance the response to one single gas. The Eu-doped SnO2 NBs, pure-SnO2 NBs, and their single NB devices are fabricated by simple techniques. The sensing properties of the two sensors have been experimentally investigated. It is found that the two sensors possess long-term stability with rapid response performance, and Eu doping improves the electronic performance and the gas-sensing response, particularly to acetone. In addition, the effects aroused by Eu have been theoretically calculated, which indicates that Eu doping enhances the sensing performance of SnO2. Consequently, Eu-doped SnO2 NBs show great potential applications in the detection of acetone.