Semiconducting nanostructures and nanocomposites for the recognition of toxic chemicals (a review)

Semiconducting metal oxide and conducting polymers based nanostructures possess unique morphological, optical and structural properties for the important applications in emerging technologies. On the other hand, the semiconducting nanocomposites offer the possibilities to control the properties by varying the composition of the materials and the related parameters such as morphology and an interface. This article provides a condensed overview of metal oxide and conducting polymer based semiconducting nanostructures and nanocompositesfor the development of chemical sensors. This work is a comprehensive review of current research activities that concentrate on chemical sensors based on metal oxides and conducting polymers nanostructures like nanotubes, nanorods, nanosheets and nanoballs. The experimental principle, design of sensing devices, sensing mechanism, and the significant sensing parameters are comprehensively discussed.