A new class of porous silicon electrochemical transducers built from pyrolyzed polyfurfuryl alcohol

Abstract

Carbon-based nanomaterials are key to developing high-performing electrochemical sensors with improved sensitivity and selectivity. Nonetheless, limitations in their fabrication and integration into devices often constrain their practical applications. Moreover, carbon nanomaterials-based electrochemical devices still face problems such as large background currents, poor stability, and slow kinetics. To advance towards a new class of carbon nanostructured electrochemical transducers, we propose the in-situ polymerization and carbonization of furfuryl alcohol (FA) on porous silicon (pSi) to produce a tailored and highly stable transducer. The thin layer of polyfurfuryl alcohol (PFA) that conformally coats the pSi scaffold transforms into nanoporous carbon when subjected to pyrolysis above 600 °C. The morphological and chemical properties of PFA-pSi were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, and Raman and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopies. Their stability and electrochemical performance were investigated by cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy in [Fe(CN)₆]^3-/4-, [Ru(NH₃)₆]^2+/3+, and hydroquinone. PFA-pSi showed superior electrochemical performance compared to screen-printed carbon electrodes while also surpassing glassy carbon electrodes in specific aspects. Besides, PFA-pSi has the additional advantage of easy tuning of the electroactive surface area. To prove its potential for biosensing purposes, a DNA sensor based on quantifying the partial pore blockage of the pSi upon target hybridization was built on PFA-pSi. The sensor showed a limit of detection of 1.4 pM, outperforming other sensors based on the same sensing mechanism.