GAMMA RADIATION AND OZONE SENSING USING MIXED OXIDE THIN FILMS

Gamma radiation and ozone sensing properties of mixed oxides in the form of thermally evaporated thin films are explored. External effects, such as radiation and ozone cause defects in the materials they interact with, cause changes in the material properties. An Edwards E306A thermal coating system was used for the mixed oxides thin films deposition. Cu electrodes were manufactured on the substrate via thermal evaporation, photoresist was spin-coated over it and was exposed to UV light via acetate containing the desired inter-digitated electrode patterns. After the exposure, the substrate was placed in a developer solution and then rinsed in water and placed in the etching solution to reveal the electrode pattern. The optical properties of the films were explored using CARY 1E UV-Visible Spectrophotometer. The influence of gamma radiation on the electrical properties of the films was traced via the measurements of conductance versus radiation dose, which were recorded in real-time using HP 4277A LCZ impedance analyzer at a frequency of 1 kHz. The fact that the explored thin films were sensitive to both gamma radiation and ozone exposure enables the development of cost-efective real-time monitoring system for personnel protection and environmental monitoring. This novel approach would allow the manufacture of the sensor system with multiple sensor heads during one technological process, whereas various shielding materials or pattern recognition could be employed to differentiate between the effects of ozone and gamma radiation on the mixed oxide thin films sensors.