Ion sensors based on novel fiber organic electrochemical transistors for lead ion detection

Fiber organic electrochemical transistors (FECTs) based on polypyrrole and nanofibers have been prepared for the first time. FECTs exhibited excellent electrical performances, on/off ratios up to 104 and low applied voltages below 2 V. The ion sensitivity behavior of the fiber organic electrochemical transistors was investigated. It exhibited that the transfer curve of FECTs shifted to lower gate voltage with increasing cations concentration, the sensitivity reached to 446 μA/dec in the 10–5–10–2 M Pb2+ concentration range. The ion selective properties of the FECTs have also been systematically studied for the detection of potassium, calcium, aluminum, and lead ions. The devices with different cations showed great difference in response curves. It was suitable for selectively monitoring Pb2+ with respect to other cations. The results indicated FECTs were very effective for electrochemical sensing of lead ion, which opened a promising perspective for wearable electronics in healthcare and biological application.