Effect of defects in TiO2 nanoplates with exposed {001} facets on the gas sensing properties

摘要

The exposed crystal facet of TiO2 is a crucial factor influencing the gas sensing properties. TiO2 with high-energy{001}crystal facets that have higher surface energy and reactivity is expected to exhibit excellent gas-sensing properties. In this paper, TiO2 nanoplates with defective{001}facets were synthesized by chemical etching via one-step hydrothermal method. We carefully explored the gas-sensing performance of TiO2 nanoplates with defective and complete{001}facets towards acetone. The results show that the sensing response of TiO2 nanoplates with complete{001}facets is 70%higher than that of defective TiO2 nanoplates, which proves that the{001}facets plays a vital role in improving the gas sensing performance of TiO2. It is speculated that the poor gas sensitivity of defective TiO2 can be contributed to fewer adsorption sites and blocked electron transfer. This work presents a more direct evidence for explaining the important role of the complete{001}crystal facets in high sensitivity of TiO2 and also provides a new insight for preparing high sensitivity sensing materials.