Highly sensitive and selective trimethylamine sensors based on WO3 nanorods decorated with Au nanoparticles

One-dimensional tungsten oxide (WO3) gas sensing materials have been widely used for the detection of trimethylamine (TMA) gas. Furthermore, it is believed that an effective method to improve the gas sensing performance is to introduce noble metals into sensing materials. In this work, a novel gas sensing material was prepared by decorating Au nanoparticles on WO3 nanorods. Based on field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM/EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), the morphology and microstructure of as-prepared samples were characterized. Results show that Au nanoparticles with diameter of 13-15 nm are loaded on the surface of WO3 nanorods with length of about 1-2 pm and width of 50-80 nm. Gas sensing tests reveal that the Au@WO3 sensor has remarkably enhanced response to TMA gas compared with pure WO3 (n)anorods. In addition, and the gas sensing mechanism has been investigated based on the experimental results. The superior sensing features indicate the present Au@WO3 nanocomposites are promising for gas sensors, which can be used in the detection of the trimethylamine gas and this work provides insights and strategies for the fabrication of sensing materials.