Improving the properties of Fe₂O₃ by a sparking method under a uniform magnetic field for a high-performance humidity...

Iron oxide (Fe₂O₃) thin films are promising semiconductors for electronic applications because Fe₂O₃ is an earth-abundant semiconductor with an appropriate band gap. However, many methods for the synthesis of Fe₂O₃ thin films require a corrosive source, complex procedures, and many types of equipment. Here, we report, for the first time, a simple method for Fe₂O₃ deposition using sparking under a uniform magnetic field. The morphology of Fe₂O₃ displayed an agglomeration of particles with a network-like structure. The crystallite size, % Fe content, and optical bandgap of Fe₂O₃ were influenced by changes in the magnitude of the magnetic field. For application in humidity sensors, Fe₂O₃ at a magnetic field of 200 mT demonstrated a sensitivity of 99.81%, response time of 0.33 s, and recovery time of 2.57 s. These results can provide references for new research studies.