Growth, Characterization and technological applications of semiconductor SnO <inf>2</inf> nanotubes and In <inf>2</inf>O <inf>3</inf> nanowires

Tin dioxide nanotubes (200 nm in diameter) were synthesised by the sol-gel template method. The gas sensitivity of SnO 2 nanotubes has been investigated. Due to the small grain size and large amount of grain boundary, SnO 2 nanotubes demonstrated good sensitivity in sensing ethanol gas and had an ability to detect ammonia gas without any doping or surface modification. In 2O 3 semiconductor nanowires were synthesized efficiently by the chemical vapor deposition method through carbon thermal reduction. The diameter, length and morphologies of In 2O 3 nanowires can be varied by controlling the synthetic conditions. The In 2O 3 nanowires were characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). The application of In203 nanowires for gas sensors was tested. Copyright © 2009 American Scientific Publishers All rights reserved