A Porous Nanostructured ZnO Layer for Ultraviolet Sensing with Quartz Crystal Microbalance Technique

Porous films of metals and metal oxides have gained growing attention as potential materials for use in applications that require large, specific surface areas, such sensors, supercapacitors, batteries. In this study, a “black-metal”-like porous Zn–ZnO composite layer was grown by room temperature co-sputtering Zn ZnO:Ga (3 at/%) ceramic targets. Following deposition, ZnO obtained subsequent thermal annealing process at 400 °C air. The morphology structural properties the layered objects were analyzed. porosity chemical characteristics nanostructured with method herein described make it suitable to be used sensitivity-enhancing active element quartz crystal microbalance (QCM)-based ultraviolet (UV) sensors. prepared resonant ZnO/QCM sensors under UV radiation exhibited maximum shift up 35 Hz several “on-off” cycles, excellent response, recovery times 11 12 s, respectively.