A multisite strategy to improve room-temperature DMMP sensing performances on reduced graphene oxide modulated by N-doped carbon nanoparticles and copper ions

Development of room-temperature gas sensors with excellent sensing performances for detection of dimethyl methylphosphonate (DMMP, a simulant of organophosphate) has aroused considerable attention. However, the weak adsorption ability of sensing materials toward DMMP molecules causes poor sensing performances. In this work, a multisite strategy for enhancing sensitivity was proposed by introduction of both N-doped carbon nanoparticles (N-CNPs) and copper ions onto the surface of rGO (designated as GNC). Impressively, optimal GNC-3 exhibits the response value of 10.2% toward 100 ppm DMMP, which is 5.3 times higher than that of pristine rGO. This mechanism for multisite-assisted enhanced DMMP sensing performances was investigated by combined characterizations of Fourier-transform infrared spectra, UV-Vis spectra, photoluminescence spectra and Mott-Schottky curves. Besides the construction of multisite, improvement of hydrogen bonding interactions between DMMP molecules and N-CNPs in hybrids assisted by copper ions, and decrease of conduction band potential by formation of ternary hybrids also contribute to enhance the sensitivity of DMMP sensors. These findings not only provided new insights into designing high-performance room-temperature gas sensors, but also promoted the fundamental research on sensing mechanism for room-temperature gas sensors.