title: Carbon-carbon contacts for robust nanoelectromechanical switches.
abstract: Nanoelectromechanical devices exhibiting dramatically improved robustness through novel material selection are demonstrated. A unique combination of carbon nanotube active elements and conductive diamond-like carbon contact electrodes results in reliable switching performance not found in devices with ubiquitously-used metal thin film electrodes. This in turn represents a viable means to improve the reliability of a diverse, and widely-pursued class of nanoscale devices ranging from single-nanostructure switches to massively parallel arrays.
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Rd., Evanston, IL 60208-3111, USA.
authors.forename: Owen
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Loh
authors.forename: Xiaoding
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sullivan
authors.forename: Leonidas E
authors.initials: LE
authors.lastname: Ocola
authors.forename: Ralu
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Divan
authors.forename: Horacio D
authors.initials: HD
authors.lastname: Espinosa
mesh_terms: D002244:Carbon / Q000737:chemistry*; D018130:Diamond / Q000737:chemistry; D004566:Electrodes; D036103:Nanotechnology / Q000295:instrumentation*; D037742:Nanotubes, Carbon / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D037742:Nanotubes, Carbon; D002244:Carbon; D018130:Diamond