New Publication | Ultra-Fast Meets Ultra-Sensitive: Fullerene-Engineered Hydrogen Sensors Set a New Standard

We are excited to share our latest publication in Nature Communications, reporting a new class of ultra-fast, ultra-sensitive hydrogen sensors that operate at room temperature and achieve sub-second response times with parts-per-billion (ppb) detection limits.

Hydrogen sensing is critical for clean energy, industrial safety, and environmental monitoring, yet achieving both rapid response and ultra-low detection limits in a single device remains a major challenge. In this work, we demonstrate a scalable nano-resistor network architecture that overcomes this long-standing trade-off through synergistic nanostructuring, alloying, and interface engineering.

🔬 What We Did

We developed a fullerene-decorated PdCo composite nanohole array (CHA) hydrogen sensor by integrating:

• PdCo alloy nano-resistor networks for fast hydrogen kinetics and hysteresis suppression

• A porous C₆₀ (fullerene) interlayer to increase surface-to-volume ratio, enable dual-side hydrogen access, and relieve mechanical stress during cycling

• Perfluorinated polymer (Teflon AF) interlayers to reduce activation barriers and accelerate hydrogen sorption

• An optional PMMA protective coating to improve selectivity and stability under humidity and interfering gases

This multi-layer, interface-engineered design enables exceptional sensing performance while remaining compatible with scalable nanofabrication techniques such as nanosphere lithography and glancing-angle deposition.

⚡ Key Results

• Record-fast response:

  • As low as 0.40 ± 0.06 s across 1–100 mbar H₂ at room temperature

• Ultra-low detection limit:

  • 40 ppb H₂ with signal-to-noise ratio ≈ 10

  • Extrapolated detection limits approaching the sub-ppb regime

• Excellent robustness:

  • Stable operation over hundreds of hydrogen cycling events

  • Maintains performance under 90% relative humidity

  • Strong selectivity against CO₂, CH₄, and CO

• Low power consumption:

  • ~25 μW during operation

🌍 Why This Matters

To our knowledge, this is the first room-temperature hydrogen sensor that simultaneously achieves:

• ≤ 1 s response time, and

• ppb-level detection sensitivity

These performance metrics directly address requirements for automotive hydrogen safety, environmental monitoring, and emerging energy applications, while also opening pathways toward detecting trace hydrogen isotopes and low-abundance hydrogen in complex environments.

More broadly, this work highlights the power of engineered interlayers—including carbon-based materials and polymers—as a general design strategy for next-generation chemical and gas sensors.

📄 Publication Details

Title: Fullerene-decorated PdCo nano-resistor network hydrogen sensors with sub-second response and parts-per-billion detection at room temperature

Journal: Nature Communications (2025)

Authors: Tu Anh Ngo, Ashwin T. Magar, Minh T. Pham, Hoang M. Luong, Thi Thu Trinh Phan, M. Tuan Trinh, Michael Jung, George K. Larsen, Yiping Zhao, and Tho D. Nguyen

👉 Read the full article:https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-67708-2