Structural characterization of Nb–TiO2 nanosized thick-films for gas sensing application

Pure and Nb-doped TiO2 thick-films were prepared by screen-printing, starting from nanosized powders. Grain growth and crystalline phase modification occurred as consequence of firing at high temperature. It has been shown that niobium addition inhibits grain coarsening and hinders anatase-to-rutile phase transition. These semiconducting films exhibited n-type behavior, while Nb acted as donor–dopant. Gas measurements demonstrated that the films are suitable for CO or NO2 sensing. Microstructural characterization by electron microscopy and differential thermal analysis (DTA) highlights the dependence of gas-sensing behavior on filmʹs properties.