Patterned growth of single-walled carbon nanotube arrays from a vapor-deposited Fe catalyst

Abstract

Single-walled carbon nanotubes have been grown on a variety of substrates by chemical vapor deposition using low-coverage vacuum-deposited iron as a catalyst. Ordered arrays of suspended nanotubes ranging from submicron to several micron lengths have been obtained on Si, SiO₂, Al₂O₃, and Si₃N₄ substrates that were patterned on hundred nanometer length scales with a focused ion beam machine. Electric fields applied during nanotube growth allow the control of growth direction. Nanotube circuits have been constructed directly on contacting metal electrodes of Pt/Cr patterned with catalysts. Patterning with solid iron catalyst is compatible with modern semiconductor fabrication strategies and may contribute to the integration of nanotubes in complex device architectures.