Water electrolysis and energy harvesting with zero-dimensional ion-sensitive field-effect transistors

N. Clement (1) , K. Nishiguchi (2) , Jean-François Dufrêche (3) , David Guérin (1) , A. Fujiwara (2) , D. Vuillaume (1)

1 IEMN - Institut d’Électronique, de Microélectronique et de Nanotechnologie - UMR 8520
2 NTT Basic Research Laboratories [Atsugi]
3 LMCT - Modélisation Mésoscopique et Chimie Théorique

The relationship of the gas bubble size to the size distribution critically influences the effectiveness of electrochemical processes. Several optical and acoustical techniques have been used to characterize the size and emission frequency of bubbles. Here, we used zero-dimensional (0D) ion-sensitive field-effect transistors (ISFETs) buried under a microbath to detect the emission of individual bubbles electrically and to generate statistics on the bubble emission time. The bubble size was evaluated via a simple model of the electrolytic current. We suggest that energy lost during water electrolysis could be used to generate electric pulses at an optimal efficiency with an array of 0D ISFETs.

Mots clés: 0D Transistor; bubble detection; energy harvesting; hydrogen production; ISFET; Si nanowire; water electrolysis

Domaines: Electronique; Chimie

N. Clement, K. Nishiguchi, Jean-François Dufrêche, David Guérin, A. Fujiwara, et al.. Water electrolysis and energy harvesting with zero-dimensional ion-sensitive field-effect transistors. Nano Letters, 2013, 13 (8), pp.3903-3908. ⟨10.1021/nl4019879⟩. ⟨hal-00871930⟩