Ceramic sensors for humidity detection-- the state-of-the-art and future developments.pdfVIP

B CHEMICAL E L S E V I E R Sensors and Actuators B 23 1995 135-156 Ceramic sensors for humidity detection: the state-of-the-art and future developments Enrico Traversa Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche, Universit,~ di Roma Tor Vergata via della Ricerca Scientifica, 00133 Rome, Italy Received 15 September 1993; accepted 20 September 1994 Abstract The possible applications of humidity sensors in automated systems for environmental control encompass many industrial and domestic fields. Very different operating temperatures and a variety of humidity ranges are needed for these purposes. The different humidity-sensing mechanisms and operating principles identified for ceramics are reviewed. Ceramic humidity sensors are divided into ionic, electronic, solid-electrolyte and rectifying-junction types. Examples of the performance of some ceramic sensors are presented. The correlation between the microstructure of ceramic materials and their humidity-sensitive electrical response is discussed. The improvement of the performance of ionic-type humidity sensors by the addition of alkali ions is explained in terms of influence on the microstructure and on the intrinsic impedance. The recent trend towards the miniaturization and integration of sensors on a single chip requires the production of ceramic films. Ceramic thin films prepared by sol-gel or sputtering processes are investigated. The results obtained on the humidity sensitivity of p--n semiconducting oxide heterocontacts are also reported. Keywords: Ceramic sensors; Humidity detection 1. Introduction or the dew point, but more often it is important to control the relative humidity rh . Monitoring and controlling environmental humidity A wide variety of materials has been studied as is