Chemical Vapor Deposition of Cu2O and CuO nanosystems for innovative gas sensors

Supported copper oxide nanosystems (Cu
x
O, x=1,2) were synthesized by Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) on Al
2
O
3
substrates. Structural and morphological characterization showed an evolution from polycrystalline Cu
2
O granular films to CuO samples with an entangled quasi 1-D morphology upon increasing the growth temperature from 350 to 550°C. For the first time, CVD copper oxide nanosystems were investigated in the gas sensing of CH
3
COCH
3
and CH
3
CH
2
OH. The analyses revealed appreciable responses even at moderate operating temperatures, with characteristics directly dependent on the system composition and nano-organization.