Hexamethyldisiloxane thin films as sensitive coating for quartz crystal microbalance based volatile organic compounds sensors

Hexamethyldisiloxane (HMDSO) thin films coated quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) electrodes have been characterized for the detection of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The sensitive coatings were plasma polymerized in pure vapor of HMDSO and HMDSO/O2 mixture. The sensor sensitivity was evaluated by monitoring the frequency shift (∆f) of the coated QCM electrode exposed to different concentrations of VOC vapors, such as ethanol, methanol, benzene and chloroform. The isotherm response characteristics showed good reproducibility and reversibility. For all types of analyte, ∆f were found to be linearly correlated with the concentration of VOC vapor. It was shown that it is possible to tune the chemical affinity of the sensor by changing the oxygen ratio in the deposition gas mixture. Contact angle measurements (CA), attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to study surface wettability, chemical composition and surface morphology of the coated QCM electrodes. ATR-FTIR analysis showed the presence of methyl groups around 840 cm− 1 due to Si(CH3)3 rocking vibration making the elaborated sensor surface hydrophobic. When the coating is performed in HMDSO/O2 mixture, AFM and SEM images showed an increase in the effective specific surface area of the sensor due to the increase in surface roughness. Surface morphology combined with chemical composition significantly affects the sensitivity of the QCM-based sensor.