Erik Einarsson

All-fiber pulsed lasers passively mode locked by transferable vertically aligned carbon nanotube film

An all-fiber passive laser mode locking is realized with a vertically aligned single-walled carbon nanotube film that can be transferred onto an arbitrary substrate using only hot water. A D-shaped fiber is employed as the substrate for the evanescent field interaction of propagating light with the nanotubes. The scheme highlights the efficient interaction achieved by the nanotube alignment as well as the dramatically simplified device preparation process. The demonstrated pulsed laser output has 2.9 nm of spectral full width at half-maximum and a 20.8 MHz repetition rate.

Diameter Modulation of Vertically Aligned Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes

We demonstrate wide-range diameter modulation of vertically aligned single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) using a wet chemistry prepared catalyst. In order to ensure compatibility to electronic applications, the current minimum mean diameter of 2 nm for vertically aligned SWNTs is challenged. The mean diameter is decreased to about 1.4 nm by reducing Co catalyst concentrations to 1/100 or by increasing Mo catalyst concentrations by five times. We also propose a novel spectral analysis method that allows one to distinguish absorbance contributions from the upper, middle, and lower parts of a nanotube array. We use this method to quantitatively characterize the slight diameter change observed along the array height. On the basis of further investigation of the array and catalyst particles, we conclude that catalyst aggregation-rather than Ostwald ripening-dominates the growth of metal particles.

High-Precision Selective Deposition of Catalyst for Facile Localized Growth of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes

In the liquid-based dip-coating, the hydrophilicity of a Si/SiO(2) substrate is found to be critical for the successful deposition of catalyst and hence the growth of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs). When the surface is functionalized by a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) and becomes hydrophobic, no catalyst remains and no SWNT grows. This concept can be utilized to localize the growth of SWNTs at designated regions where SAMs were selectively removed by, e.g., UV or electron beam. Patterned high-quality as-grown SWNTs with a potential line width of approximately 10 nm can be obtained.

Equilibrium Chemical Vapor Deposition Growth of Bernal-Stacked Bilayer Graphene

Using ethanol as the carbon source, self-limiting growth of AB-stacked bilayer graphene (BLG) has been achieved on Cu via an equilibrium chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process. We found that during this alcohol catalytic CVD (ACCVD) a source-gas pressure range exists to break the self-limitation of monolayer graphene on Cu, and at a certain equilibrium state it prefers to form uniform BLG with a high surface coverage of ∼94% and AB-stacking ratio of nearly 100%. More importantly, once the BLG is completed, this growth shows a self-limiting manner, and an extended ethanol flow time does not result in additional layers. We investigate the mechanism of this equilibrium BLG growth using isotopically labeled (13)C-ethanol and selective surface aryl functionalization, and results reveal that during the equilibrium ACCVD process a continuous substitution of graphene flakes occurs to the as-formed graphene and the BLG growth follows a layer-by-layer epitaxy mechanism. These phenomena are significantly in contrast to those observed for previously reported BLG growth using methane as precursor.

Carbon atoms in ethanol do not contribute equally to formation of single-walled carbon nanotubes

We propose a unique experimental technique in which isotopically labeled ethanol, e.g., 12CH3-13CH2-OH, is used to trace the carbon atoms during the formation of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) by chemical vapor deposition (CVD). The proportion of 13C is determined from Raman spectra of the obtained SWNTs, yielding the respective contribution of ethanols two different carbon atoms to SWNT formation. Surprisingly, the carbon away from the hydroxyl group is preferably incorporated into the SWNT structure, and this preference is significantly affected by growth temperature, presence of secondary catalyst metal species such as Mo, and even by the substrate material. These experiments provide solid evidence confirming that the active carbon source is not limited to products of gas-phase decomposition such as ethylene and acetylene, but ethanol itself is arriving at and reacting with the metal catalyst particles. Furthermore, even the substrate or other catalytically inactive species directly influences the formation of SWNTs, possibly by changing the local environment around the catalyst or even the reaction pathway of SWNT formation. These unexpected effects, which are inaccessible by conventional techniques, paint a clearer picture regarding the decomposition and bond breaking process of the ethanol precursor during the entire CVD process and how this might influence the quality of the obtained SWNTs.

Reversible Diameter Modulation of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes by Acetonitrile-Containing Feedstock

Changing the carbon feedstock from pure ethanol to a 5 vol % mixture of acetonitrile in ethanol during the growth of vertically aligned single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) reduces the mean diameter of the emerging SWNTs from approximately 2 to 1 nm. We show this feedstock-dependent change is reversible and repeatable, as demonstrated by multilayered vertically aligned SWNT structures. The reversibility of this process and lack of necessity for catalyst modification provides insight into the role of nitrogen in reducing the SWNT diameter.

Deformable transparent all-carbon-nanotube transistors

We fabricated polymer-laminated, transparent, all-carbon-nanotube field-effect transistors (CNT-FETs), making use of the flexible yet robust nature of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs). All components of the FET (active channel, electrodes, dielectric layer, and substrate) consist of carbon-based materials. The use of a plastic substrate that is considerably thinner than those used in other flexible CNT-FETs allowed our devices to be highly deformable without degradation of electrical properties. Using this approach, flexible, transparent CNT-FET devices able to withstand a 1 mm bending radius were realized.

High-yield synthesis of carbon coils on tungsten substrates and their behavior in the presence of an electric field

We report an effective procedure for fabricating carbon microcoils and nanocoils with three-dimensional spiral structures in high yield by nickel (Ni)-catalyzed thermal decomposition of acetylene. The Ni catalyst particles used in this preparation were electrochemically deposited onto tungsten substrates. Springlike coils having low pitch and micrometer-scale diameters and ropelike coils having higher pitch and nanometer-scale diameters were observed. Electrical and optical properties were investigated by employing a field-emission probe system equipped with an optical spectrometer. In an applied field above 1.5 V/μm, significant electron emission was observed from individual ropelike nanocoils. The approximately linear slope of the corresponding Fowler-Nordheim plot denotes predominately field-emission behavior. During measurement, individual carbon coils aligned themselves along the electric field, exhibiting a natural resonance on some occasions. As the field strength increased above 2.5 V/μm, the emission-current density for a single nanocoil was measured to be on the order of 10 4 A/cm 2 . This high-current density caused Joule heating, resulting in strong photon emission by incandescence.

Vertically Aligned 13C Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes Synthesized by No-Flow Alcohol Chemical Vapor Deposition and their Root Growth Mechanism

We present the successful synthesis of aligned 13C labeled single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) arrays from alcohol by a modified no-flow chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method that makes efficient growth possible using a small amount of carbon source. The synthesis of high-quality SWNTs by this alternative method was confirmed by resonance Raman spectroscopy, which also showed that the quality of the grown SWNTs is uniform in growth direction. The synthesis of 13C labeled SWNTs provides solid evidence for the root growth mechanism in alcohol catalytic CVD, which agrees well with the transmission electron microscopy (TEM) observations.

Decomposition of Ethanol and Dimethyl Ether during Chemical Vapor Deposition Synthesis of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes

In this study, we investigated carbon feedstock decomposition conditions on the synthesis of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) by chemical vapor deposition. We simulated gas-phase thermal decomposition of ethanol and dimethyl ether (DME) at typical SWNT growth conditions using the chemical kinetic model, and confirmed the reaction trends and primary products using Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy. Molar fractions were correlated against residence time in the reactor by adjusting the volumetric gas flow rate, and concentration profiles of reaction species were compared to the predicted decomposition mechanism. Signature peak intensities indicated concentrations of both ethanol and DME.