Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube Growth from Highly Activated Metal Nanoparticles

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

We demonstrate that any metal, even gold, silver, and copper, can act as a catalyst for SWCNT synthesis in chemical vapor deposition (CVD). Metal nanoparticles 3 nm or less in diameter, introduced into CVD ambience immediately after heat treatment at 800-950 degrees C in air, produce SWCNTs. The activation method is effective for copper and various noble metals as well as for iron-family elements. This implies that any metal particle may produce SWCNTs when its size becomes 1-3 nm. In other words, carbon atoms can form SWCNTs in a self-assembling fashion on nanoparticles without the specific functions of iron-family elements.