U.S. Department of Energy

Paul R Ohodnicki

James J Finley

James P Thiel

Adam D Polcyn

Paul A Medwick

Andrew V Wagner

Harry Buhay

Abhinav Bhandari

Thomas D Brown

Jeffrey A Benigni

Dennis J O'shaughnessy

The disclosure relates to a plasmon resonance-based method for gas sensing in a gas stream utilizing a gas sensing material. In an embodiment the gas stream has a temperature greater than about 500&#xb0; C. The gas sensing material is comprised of gold nanoparticles having an average nanoparticle diameter of less than about 100 nanometers dispersed in an inert matrix having a bandgap greater than or equal to 5 eV, and an oxygen ion conductivity less than approximately 10S/cm at a temperature of 700&#xb0; C. Exemplary inert matrix materials include SiO, AlO, and SiNas well as modifications to modify the effective refractive indices through combinations and/or doping of such materials. Changes in the chemical composition of the gas stream are detected by changes in the plasmon resonance peak. The method disclosed offers significant advantage over active and reducible matrix materials typically utilized, such as yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) or TiO.

Nanocomposite thin films for optical gas sensing

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Alison Park, PA, United States of America

Paul R Ohodnicki