Transition metal doped nanocrystalline Li2B4O7 for gas sensing applications

The nanoparticles of Li2B4O7:TM (TM=Co and Cu) were synthesized by a sol-gel process and characterized by XRD, FTIR and FESEM with EDAX. The effect of dopants (Co and Cu) concentration on the particle size and the UV-vis transmittance has been reported. Ethanol gas sensing studies were carried out using fiber optic sensor by spectral intensity modulation. The sensitivity for LTB: Co is −22, −20 and −28 counts/100 ppm and for LTB: Cu is −30, −10 and −20 counts/100 ppm for concentrations 0.01 M, 0.03 M and 0.05 M respectively.