Synthesis of polyhedron hollow structure Cu2O and their gas-sensing properties

Well-defined polyhedral hollow structures (PHSs) Cu2O with hollow interior and high geometrical symmetry are successfully prepared via a novel in situ oxidative etching method at room temperature. X-ray power diffraction (XRD), field-emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) techniques were employed to elaborately characterize the structure and morphology of the as-prepared samples. These PHSs Cu2O with hollow interiors and open “window” show effective-applied and good-diffusion structure for the gas-sensing application, which will exhibit short good response, response/recovery times and good reproducibility to ethanol. It is found that type-I nanocages Cu2O have a response of 8.6–50 ppm ethanol at the optimal operating temperature of 210 °C and the response time is within 23.7 s.