AVS 51st International Symposium
    Surface Science Thursday Sessions
       Session SS1-ThM

Paper SS1-ThM11
Metal Oxide Nanowires: How Nano-Electronics Can Contribute to Catalysis

Thursday, November 18, 2004, 11:40 am, Room 210B

Session: Metal Oxide and Clusters III: Supported Cluster Formation and Reactivity
Presenter: A.A. Kolmakov, University of California, Santa Barbara
Authors: A.A. Kolmakov, University of California, Santa Barbara
Y. Lilach, University of California, Santa Barbara
M. Moskovits, University of California, Santa Barbara
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We tested the performance of individual metal oxide single crystal nanowires and nanobelts as catalysts and gas sensors operating in high vacuum and under "real world" reaction conditions. We showed that when nanowire radius is comparable with its Debye length, the adsorption/desorption of donor/acceptor molecules on the surface of the nanowire alters the bulk electron density inside the nanowire what can be sensitively monitored via changes in the conductivity of the nanowire. When nanowire is configured as a field effect transistor the availability of free electrons in the bulk for redox surface reactions can be controlled by the gate thus reactivity (sensitivity) and selectivity of the nanowire surface can be tuned electronically. In vivo conductometric measurements on individual nanowire during its surface doping with catalytic particles manifest the drastic enhance of the reactivity/selectivity of this catalyst (sensor) due to selective adsorption and spillover effect.