La(0.7)Sr(0.3)MnO3 nanoparticles based ultra-high sensitive ammonia chemical sensor

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Chemical Sensing

Background:

• Development of sensitive chemical sensors is crucial for environmental monitoring and industrial applications.
• Lanthanum strontium manganese oxide (LSMO) nanoparticles offer unique electronic and magnetic properties suitable for sensor applications.
• Efficient electron mediators are key to enhancing sensor sensitivity and performance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To fabricate a facile, reliable, and ultra-high sensitive aqueous ammonia chemical sensor.
• To investigate the potential of LSMO nanoparticles as efficient electron mediators in chemical sensing.
• To establish a new benchmark for sensitivity in aqueous ammonia detection.

Main Methods:

• Synthesis of LSMO nanoparticles via a hydrothermal protocol followed by annealing.
• Characterization of LSMO nanoparticles' morphological, structural, and compositional properties.
• Fabrication and testing of an I-V technique-based aqueous ammonia sensor utilizing LSMO NPs.

Main Results:

• The fabricated sensor demonstrated ultra-high sensitivity of 494.68 +/- 0.01 microA cm(-2)mM(-1) for aqueous ammonia.
• A very low detection limit of 0.2 microM was achieved with a response time under 10 seconds.
• This represents the first use of LSMO as an electron mediator for aqueous ammonia sensing, showing superior sensitivity compared to existing literature.

Conclusions:

• LSMO nanoparticles are highly effective electron mediators for ultra-high sensitive aqueous ammonia chemical sensors.
• The developed sensor technology offers a significant advancement in detecting aqueous ammonia with unprecedented sensitivity and speed.
• This research expands the scope of nanomaterials applicable as efficient electron mediators for advanced chemical sensing platforms.