Preparation of polypyrrole@WO3 hybrids with p-n heterojunction and sensing performance to triethylamine at room temperature

We fabricated the PPy/WO3 hybrids with p-n heterojunction by in situ chemical oxidation polymerization and loaded on a substrate of flexible PET thin film to structure a smart triethylamine sensor. The structure, morphology and thermal stability of the hybrid were characterized by various analysis methods. The sensing properties of the sensor to trace amounts of TEA were examined at room temperature. Compared to those reported in literature, the smart sensor not only exhibits high sensitivity, good selectivity and wide linear response to triethylamine at room temperature but also has been flexible, structure simple and portable performance. The mechanism of enhancing gas sensing properties was discussed in detail, which is attributed to the complementary effect and the formation of p-n heterojunction at an interface between WO3 and PPy. The research is expected to open a new window for development of a kind of flexible and wearable electronic devices based on various heterostructure hybrids. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.