title: Alignment controlled growth of single-walled carbon nanotubes on quartz substrates.
abstract: Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) possess extraordinary electrical properties, with many possible applications in electronics. Dense, horizontally aligned arrays of linearly configured SWNTs represent perhaps the most attractive and scalable way to implement this class of nanomaterial in practical systems. Recent work shows that templated growth of tubes on certain crystalline substrates yields arrays with the necessary levels of perfection, as demonstrated by the formation of devices and full systems on quartz. This paper examines advanced implementations of this process on crystalline quartz substrates with different orientations, to yield strategies for forming diverse, but well-defined horizontal configurations of SWNTs. Combined experimental and theoretical studies indicate that angle-dependent van der Waals interactions can account for nearly all aspects of alignment on quartz with X, Y, Z, and ST cuts, as well as quartz with disordered surface layers. These findings provide important insights into methods for guided growth of SWNTs, and possibly other classes of nanomaterials, for applications in electronics, sensing, photodetection, light emission, and other areas.
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, USA.
authors.forename: Jianliang
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Xiao
authors.forename: Simon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Dunham
authors.forename: Ping
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Yongwei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Coskun
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kocabas
authors.forename: Lionel
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Moh
authors.forename: Yonggang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Keh-Chih
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Hwang
authors.forename: Chun
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: John A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Rogers
mesh_terms: D003198:Computer Simulation; D003460:Crystallization / Q000379:methods*; D046911:Macromolecular Substances / Q000737:chemistry; D008422:Materials Testing; D008956:Models, Chemical; D008958:Models, Molecular; D008968:Molecular Conformation; D036103:Nanotechnology / Q000379:methods*; D037742:Nanotubes, Carbon / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D010316:Particle Size; D011791:Quartz / Q000737:chemistry*; D013499:Surface Properties
chemical_list: D046911:Macromolecular Substances; D037742:Nanotubes, Carbon; D011791:Quartz