Smart Sensor Arrays

Sensors play a crucial role in our everyday life and will become more and more demanded with the transition towards smart cities and the “Internet of Things” with the result of an ever-increasing energy demand. Thus, the research of improving the energy efficiency of sensor systems has started to move towards edge computing and neuromorphic engineering while at the same time additive manufacturing has gained increasing attention as a means for a rapid, scalable fabrication of functional devices yet with huge design freedom and quick iteration cycles during the development phase. In this chapter the junction of pre-designed components with self-organizing material systems for the facile fabrication of sensor devices via direct ink writing is demonstrated. As examples 3D-printed CuO/Cu2O/Cu- and CuO/Fe2O3 acetone gas sensors are shown, as well as how the decoration of metal-oxide semiconducting sensor materials with noble metallic nanoparticles can enhance the sensor properties with respect to sensitivity, selectivity and stability. Finally, the assembly of conductive bridges between electrodes stimulated by voltage pulses is introduced as an approach towards facilitating the self-organization of neuromorphic circuits.