Phase-Dependent Dual Discrimination of MoSe2/MoO3 Composites Toward N,N-Dimethylformamide and Triethylamine at Room Temperature

Herein, we present, a chemiresistive-type gas sensor composed of two-dimensional 1T-2H phase MoSe2 and MoO3. Mixed phase MoSe2 and MoSe2/MoO3 composites were synthesized via a facile hydrothermal method. The structure analysis using X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy revealed the formation of different phases of MoSe2 at different temperatures. With increase in synthesis temperature from 180 to 200 °C, the relative percentage of 1T and 2H-MoSe2 phases changed from 80 to 48%. On the other hand, at 220 °C, 2H-MoSe2 was obtained as a major component. The gas sensing properties of individual MoSe2 and composites were investigated at room temperature toward various analytes. The obtained results revealed that composites possess improved sensing features as compared with individual MoSe2 or MoO3. Data also revealed that the composite with dominating 1T-phase exhibits relatively higher response (10%, at 10 ppm) for dimethylformamide (DMF) compared to triethylamine (TEA) (3%, at 10 ppm). In contrast, the composite with larger 2H-phase exhibited affinity toward TEA and had a relative response of about 2%. Therefore, selectivity of a sensor device can be tuned by an appropriately designed MoSe2/MoO3 composite. These results signify the importance of MoO3-based composites with dual-phase MoSe2 for successfully discriminating between DMF and TEA at room-temperature.