Highly sensitive and selective H2S sensor based on porous ZnFe2O4 nanosheets

Abstract Increasing demands for detection of toxic gases in ambient atmosphere have attracted much attention to design and fabricate gas sensors with high sensitivity, good selectivity and low operating temperature. Herein, porous ZnFe 2 O 4 nanosheets (NSs) have been successfully synthesized using graphene sheets as hard templates. The as-fabricated ZnFe 2 O 4 NSs are composed of small particles with a diameter of approximately 10–20 nm and the pore size in the NSs is in range of 5–50 nm. In comparison with the Fe 2 O 3 NSs, ZnO NSs and ZnFe 2 O 4 nanoparticles (NPs), the gas sensors based on ZnFe 2 O 4 NSs exhibit superior H 2 S sensing performance, including high sensor response at a low working temperature (85 °C), relatively fast response and recovery times, and good selectivity. Furthermore, the sensors based on ZnFe 2 O 4 NSs show good repeatability and long-term stability. Our results demonstrate that the porous ZnFe 2 O 4 NSs are very promising for the fabrication of high-performance H 2 S gas sensors. The work highlights the possibility to develop a novel high performance gas sensor for practical applications.