ABSTRACT
A large number of nanotechnology-enabled devices have been developed for temperature sensing. A nanoscale thermocouple is formed using tungsten and platinum nanosize strips. Another resistive thermal nanosensor is fabricated by focused ion beam chemical vapor deposition. Use of “carbon-nanowire-on-diamond” and laterally grown CNT between two microelectrodes as resistive temperature nanosensors and carbon nanotube grown on nickel film as a resistive flow-temperature (10–300 K) nanosensor are explained. Resistors and diode structures made from silicon nanowire are also employed as temperature nanosensors. Temperature sensing can be performed with ratiometric fluorescent nanoparticles. Er3+/Yb3+ co-doped Gd2O3 nano-phosphor is applied as a temperature nanosensor using fluorescence intensity ratio technique. Distant temperature sensing is done through luminescence of optically heated Yb3+-Er3+ Co-doped fluoride nanoparticles. Porphyrin-containing copolymer works as a thermochromic nanosensor. Other examples considered are silicon-micromachined scanning thermal profiler, superconducting hot electron nanobolometer, thermal convective accelerometer using CNT sensing element, and SWCNT sensor for airflow measurement. A vacuum pressure and flow velocity sensor is made using batch-processed CNT wall. Nanogap Pirani gauge is utilized for vacuum measurements. Carbon nanotube-polymer nanocomposite serves as a conductivity response infrared nanosensor. Ideas in nanocalorimetry are discussed.
