High performance of ZnO nanowire protein sensors enhanced by the piezotronic effect

Based on a metal–semiconductor–metal structure, the performance of a ZnO nanowire (NW) based sensor has been studied for detecting Immunoglobulin G (IgG)-targeted protein. By applying a compressive strain, the piezotronic effect on ZnO NW protein sensors can not only increase the resolution of such sensors by tens of times, but also largely improve the detection limit and sensitivity. A theoretical model is proposed to explain the observed behaviors of the sensor. This study demonstrates a prospective approach to raise the resolution, improve the detection limit and enhance the general performance of a biosensor.