Morphological analysis of nanocrystalline SnO2 for gas sensor applications

Structural and morphological analysis of nanocrystalline SnO2 for gas sensor applications were performed at different annealing conditions by using nanopowders and thin nanocrystalline layers. The evolution of the grain size and the morphology of Pt doped tin dioxide nanoparticles with increase of annealing temperature from 450 to 1000 degrees C were analyzed by means of transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and micro-Raman spectroscopies. TEM shows that the average particle size increases, the size distribution becomes more spread out, and the grain faceting, as a mechanism of energy minimization, is more evident with increasing temperature. Furthermore, the shape of the particles changes with the annealing temperature, which explains the results of the FTIR spectra using the Theory of the Average Dielectric Constant (TADC). As temperature increases, the Raman spectra are modified in agreement with a reduction of the crystalline defect concentration and a grain size increase. The thin nanocrystalline SnO2 layers, deposited on alpha-Al2O3 or on thermally oxidized Si substrates, have been annealed at 700 degrees C for 8 h under different atmospheres, such as oxygen or synthetic air. TEM proves that the annealing atmosphere has a strong influence on the size and size distribution of the nanoparticles in the thin layer. The main differences are found near the layer-substrate interface and are dependent on the annealing atmosphere as well as the nature of the substrate.