A hydrogen sensor element comprising a pair of electrodes and a hydrogen detection film disposed in contact with the pair of electrodes, wherein the hydrogen detection film contains a conjugated polymer and an organic dopant, and wherein the organic dopant includes a dopant having an acid group, and containing an atom having an absolute value of negative charge of 0.55 or more in the molecular structure other than the acid group, is provided.

The present disclosure provides a preparation method of a plasma-treated nanofiber-based hydrogen gas sensing material, including the following steps: (1) stirring a mixed solution of absolute ethanol, polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP), N, N-dimethylformamide, SnCl.sub.2.H.sub.2O, and Zn(CH.sub.3COO).sub.2.2H.sub.2O uniformly on a constant-temperature magnetic stirrer to obtain a spinning solution; (2) electrospinning the spinning solution and depositing on an aluminum foil to obtain a spinning fiber; (3) annealing the spinning fiber in a muffle furnace to obtain a hydrogen gas sensing material sample; and (4) subjecting the hydrogen gas sensing material sample to a vacuum argon plasma treatment with a Hall ion source to obtain the nanofiber-based hydrogen gas sensing material. In the method, nanofibers are prepared by electrospinning and subjected to the vacuum argon plasma treatment through the Hall ion source. The prepared sensing material has an extremely large specific surface area, and gas-sensing properties of rapid response and high sensitivity to hydrogen gas.

In various embodiments, rapid, sensitive detection of molecular hydrogen is achieved by chemically converting hydrogen to water vapor and then detecting the water vapor as a surrogate for the hydrogen. Detection may be enhanced by dampening variation in ambient water vapor and rapidly actively modulating a hydrogen-derived water vapor component. For example, the detector may receive sample gas that includes ambient water vapor and hydrogen, dry the sample gas to dampen variation in the ambient water vapor, divide the sample gas into a chemical conversion flow and a bypass flow, chemically convert hydrogen in the chemical conversion flow to water vapor, alternate between measuring water vapor in the converted chemical conversion flow or the bypass flow to produce a water vapor signal, separate the water vapor signal in the time domain to extract a hydrogen-derived water vapor signal, and output a hydrogen signal based on the hydrogen-derived water vapor signal.

According to one embodiment, a hydrogen sensor is disclosed. The hydrogen sensor includes a capacitor, a gas detector, a heater, and a determiner. The capacitor includes a deformable member that deforms by absorbing or adsorbing hydrogen and varies a capacitance value corresponding to a deformation of the deformable member. The gas detector detects gas based on a capacitance value of the capacitor. The heater heats the deformable member. The determiner determines whether gas detected by the gas detector contains a substance other than hydrogen or not, wherein the gas detector detects the gas during a heating period during which the heater heats the deformable member.

A hydrogen gas sensor with a substrate and a zinc oxide nanostructured thin film deposited on the substrate, wherein the zinc oxide nanostructured thin film has a lattice structure with a weight ratio of low binding energy O.sup.2− ions to medium binding energy oxygen vacancies in a range of 0.1 to 1.0, and a method of fabricating a gas sensor by thermally oxidizing a metal thin film under low oxygen partial pressure. Various combinations of embodiments of the hydrogen gas sensor and the method of fabricating the gas sensor are provided.

A gas sensing element that reflects light incoming along an optical path on a sensing face, where the light reflected by the gas sensing element changes depending on a quantity of a specific gas that is in contact with the gas sensing element, and where each of a first optical fiber and a second optical fiber bends the optical path. The gas sensing element, a light source, a photodetector, and a magnetic field applicator are disposed on a same side with respect to a virtual plane that is perpendicular to an incident plane of the incoming light to the sensing face of the gas sensing element and includes a point on the optical path where light goes out from the first optical fiber and a point on the optical path where light enters the second optical fiber.

An apparatus for automatic leak detection includes a fixture having a primary seal and a secondary seal. The fixture connects to a workpiece to enclose a test volume defined in the workpiece. The seals are to interface with the workpiece to at least partially enclose a buffer volume. An enclosure is to connect to the fixture to enclose a test portion of the workpiece to form a test chamber. The secondary seal separates the buffer volume from the test chamber. The test volume and the test chamber have a tracer gas pressure differential between them. A port in fluid communication with the buffer volume removes fixture leakage from the buffer volume. A detector detects the tracer gas in the test volume or the test chamber where the tracer gas pressure differential between the test volume and the test chamber urges workpiece leakage of the tracer gas to accumulate.

The present invention relates to a suspended nanowire structure. The present invention, more particularly, relates to a suspended nanowire structure capable of high-speed operation by improving the reaction rate by making the temperature distribution of the nanowire uniform.

A suspended nanowire structure in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention comprises: a substrate; a plurality of nanowires float on the substrate and extending along a first direction; electrodes respectively connected to both ends of the plurality of nanowires; and a heating electrode which is disposed on both ends of the plurality of nanowires, extends in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction, and provides heat to both ends of the plurality of nanowires during driving.

Plasmonic optical fibers, plasmonic optical sensors and methods of manufacturing the same. A fiber core conveys an optical signal therewithin and provides a plasmonic sensing area exposed to a fluid. The plasmonic sensing area is formed only on a section of an external surface of the fiber core. The plasmonic sensing area provides an interface within the section of the external surface for the conveyed signal to at least partially exit the fiber core and cause a modified optical signal to be conveyed in the fiber core. An optical signal generator may provide the optical signal to the plasmonic optical fiber, an optical signal receiver may discriminate the conveyed optical signal from the modified optical signal and a processor module may analyze the modified optical signal and identifies physical characteristics of the fluid present at the sensing area.

The filter of a gas sensor comprises an inorganic porous support supporting both an organic sulfonic acid compound including sulfo group (—SO3H) and a Lewis acid having at least a metal element of transitional metal elements, Al element, Ga element, In element, Ge element, and Sn element. The Lewis acid loaded in the inorganic porous support adsorbs low concentration siloxanes. The organic sulfonic acid compound including sulfo group polymerizes adsorbed siloxanes in the filter so as not to desorb from the filter.