Empirical Model Dedicated to the Sensitivity Study of Acoustic Hydrogen Gas Sensors Using COMSOL Multiphysics®

A. Ndieguene[1], I. Kerroum[1], F. Domingue[1], A. Reinhardt[2]
[1]Laboratoire des Microsystèmes et de Télécommunications/Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, Trois-Rivières, QC, Canada
[2]Laboratoire d’Électronique et des Technologies de l’Information, CEA, LETI Grenoble, France
Publié en 2013

Due to the increasing demand for hydrogen gas sensors for applications such as automation, transportation, or environmental monitoring, the need for sensitive and reliable sensors with a short response time is increasing. This paper presents an empirical model that studies the sensitivity of acoustic hydrogen gas sensors. A parametric study based on the variation of physical properties of sensitive layers was implemented using COMSOL Multiphysics®. Palladium is used as a sensitive layer because of its high ability to interact with hydrogen molecules. This model shows that the variation of frequency depends simultaneously on the physical and mechanical parameters variations of a sensitive layer. This study was performed considering acoustic delay lines operating in the ISM bands, at around 430 MHz and 920 MHz.