1 research outputs found
Ultratrace Detection of Toxic Chemicals: Triggered Disassembly of Supramolecular Nanotube Wrappers
Chemical sensors
offer opportunities for improving personal security,
safety, and health. To enable broad adoption of chemical sensors requires
performance and cost advantages that are best realized from innovations
in the design of the sensing (transduction) materials. Ideal materials
are sensitive and selective to specific chemicals or chemical classes
and provide a signal that is readily interfaced with portable electronic
devices. Herein we report that wrapping single walled carbon nanotubes
with metallo-supramolecular polymers creates sensory devices with
a dosimetric (time- and concentration-integrated) increase in electrical
conductivity that is triggered by electrophilic chemical substances
such as diethylchlorophosphate, a nerve agent simulant. The mechanism
of this process involves the disassembly of the supramolecular polymer,
and we demonstrate its utility in a wireless inductively powered sensing
system based on near-field communication technology. Specifically,
the dosimeters can be powered and read wirelessly with conventional
smartphones to create sensors with ultratrace detection limits