Polymer-based gas sensor on a thermally stable micro-cantilever

Polymer-based sensors have several advantages for gas detection. They can utilize different polymer composite films as their sensing materials, which results in their ability to respond to a wide range of volatiles. However, it is shown that polymer-based sensors suffer from a large temperature sensitivity that causes shift in their volatile response. To overcome this disadvantage, a new design of interdigitated electrodes on a micro-hotplate is proposed. This detector employs a micromachined sensor structure on silicon wafer that maintains a constant temperature throughout the device. Different micromachined sensor structures and substrates were investigated as candidates for constant temperature platforms. COMSOL simulations were performed to investigate the heat transfer profile. Sensor structure and dimensions together with the heater structure were optimized based on the simulation results.