High-Density Growth of Single-Wall Carbon Nanotubes on Silicon by Fabrication of Nanosized Catalyst Thin Films

A simple method for the synthesis of metal oxide thin films through gel solutions of inorganic metal salts using poly(ethylene glycol) was developed. The technique was then applied to fabricate nanoscale MgO-supported catalysts for the surface CVD growth of single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWNTs.) The results showed that the catalytic films greatly promoted the growth of SWNTs of high quality, density, and uniformity. The bundle sizes, growth density, and orientation of the resulting SWNTs could be controlled to some extent by choosing the type of catalyst and by suitable modification of the reaction parameters.