Synthesis and Fabrication of PVA-Ag-Cu and PANI-Ag-Cu Nanocomposite Thin Film Sensor for Detection of <i>E. coli</i> in Water

Polymers are excellent host materials for nanoparticles of metals and semiconductors. PVAAgCu nanocomposite was synthesized from chemical reduction, whereas PANIAgCu nanocomposite was synthesized by chemical oxidative polymerization. PVAAgCu and PANIAgCu thin films were deposited on the glass substrate by spin coating technique. The films were characterized by using XRD and AFM. The sensitivity of the samples was analyzed by IV measurement. The peaks in XRD patterns confirm the presence of Ag-Cu nanoparticles in face centered cubic structure. AFM images show the roughness of PVAAgCu and PANIAgCu increased as Ag concentration decreased and Cu concentration increased. I-V measurements indicate that the change in the current of the films increases with the presence of E. coli . The sensitivity on E. coli increases for PVAAgCu and PANIAgCu thin films with high concentration of Cu.