title: Laser-assisted simultaneous transfer and patterning of vertically aligned carbon nanotube arrays on polymer substrates for flexible devices.
abstract: We demonstrate a laser-assisted dry transfer technique for assembling patterns of vertically aligned carbon nanotube arrays on a flexible polymeric substrate. A laser beam is applied to the interface of a nanotube array and a polycarbonate sheet in contact with one another. The absorbed laser heat promotes nanotube adhesion to the polymer in the irradiated regions and enables selective pattern transfer. A combination of the thermal transfer mechanism with rapid direct writing capability of focused laser beam irradiation allows us to achieve simultaneous material transfer and direct micropatterning in a single processing step. Furthermore, we demonstrate that malleability of the nanotube arrays transferred onto a flexible substrate enables post-transfer tailoring of electric conductance by collapsing the aligned nanotubes in different directions. This work suggests that the laser-assisted transfer technique provides an efficient route to using vertically aligned nanotubes as conductive elements in flexible device applications.
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, California 94720-1740, United States.
authors.forename: Jung Bin
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: In
authors.forename: Daeho
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Fornasiero
authors.forename: Aleksandr
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Noy
authors.forename: Costas P
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Grigoropoulos
mesh_terms: D007834:Lasers; D046911:Macromolecular Substances / Q000737:chemistry / Q000528:radiation effects; D008422:Materials Testing; D008968:Molecular Conformation / Q000528:radiation effects; D054802:Molecular Imprinting / Q000379:methods*; D037742:Nanotubes, Carbon / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000528:radiation effects* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D010316:Particle Size; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000528:radiation effects*; D013499:Surface Properties / Q000528:radiation effects
chemical_list: D046911:Macromolecular Substances; D037742:Nanotubes, Carbon; D011108:Polymers