Student research opportunities
Plasmonic light absorbers for highly sensitive chemical gas sensing
Project Code: CECS_1154
This project is available at the following levels:
Engn4200, Engn R&D, Honours, Masters
Keywords:
Plasmonics Nanophotonics Photocatalysis Gas Sensing Breath Analysis
Supervisors:
Dr Tom WhiteDr Antonio Tricoli
Outline:
This project will contribute to a larger research effort to develop low-cost, portable breath analysis devices to enable widespread screening and self-monitoring of diseases such as lung cancer and diabetes. To do this, we require gas sensors that are both highly sensitive and highly selective to specific organic molecules found in human breath.
Chemical gas sensors made from porous films of semiconductor nanoparticles can detect ultra-low concentrations (ppb) of organic compounds, but they are not sufficiently selective for accurate breath analysis. These sensors work by detecting changes in the electrical conductivity of the nanoparticles when gas molecules undergo chemical reactions on their surface.
We plan to improve the selectivity of such sensors by integrating carefully-designed metal nanostructures into the semiconductor films, and using light to selectively activate only the specific reactions we want to detect. The aim of this student project is to design plasmonic metal nanostructures to strongly absorb incident light of specific wavelengths, producing ‘hot’ electrons in the metal that will be injected into the surrounding semiconductor nanoparticles. The plasmonic light absorbers must be easy to fabricate, and must retain their properties even when coated with the semiconducting film. This will require detailed optical modelling, analysis and optimization, within the constraints imposed by fabrication methods and other experimental requirements.
Goals of this project
1. Design and model various nanostructured plasmonic absorber geometries based on 1D and 2D metallic gratings
2. Evaluate absorber designs in terms of ease of fabrication, tolerance to experimental imperfections, and suitability for integration into gas sensing devices
3. Optimize the plasmonic absorbers to strongly absorb light in specific wavelength ranges
4. Provide specific optimized absorber designs to project collaborators for fabrication and characterization
Requirements/Prerequisites
This project is suitable for students with an interest in nanophotonics, nanomaterials or semiconductor devices, who have studied at least one of PHYS2017, ENGN3512 or ENGN4613. Some knowledge of semiconductors and/or nanomaterials would be useful, but not essential.
Student Gain
Advanced knowledge in the areas of nanophotonics and nanomaterials engineering
Experience in the use of advanced optical modelling tools
Independent research and analysis skills
Background Literature
Reading materials can be provided on request
