Single crystalline R-Fe 2 O 3 nanoflakes and nanowires are controllably synthesized simply by heating iron foil at different temperatures. The growth mechanisms are proposed based on the electron microscopy results. Electrical transport studies reveal n-type semiconducting behavior of R-Fe 2 O 3 nanowire. A new type of R-Fe 2 O 3 gas sensor based on single R-Fe 2 O 3 nanowire as sensing unit is developed. The gas sensing on electron transport through the nanowire is investigated. Moreover, the CO detection sensitivity can be modulated by the gate voltage. Our results indicate that R-Fe 2 O 3 nanowire holds good potential for nanoscale sensing applications.

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