Structure and electrical properties of nanocrystalline La1−xBaxFeO3 for gas sensing application

The nanocrystalline La1−xBaxFeO3 powders with x ≤ 0.3 were prepared by a sol–gel method. X-ray diffraction patterns indicate that the nanocrystalline La1−xBaxFeO3 powders are perovskite phase with orthorhombic structure. With the increasing concentration of elemental barium, the growth of the grain size is restrained. In addition, the resistance and ethanol gas-sensing properties of La1−xBaxFeO3 based sensors strongly depend on the Ba concentration. The highest response to ethanol gas (500 ppm) is 172 at 240 °C for the La1−xBaxFeO3 based sensor with x = 0.25.