The temperature dependence of Fe-catalysed growth of carbon nanotubes on silicon substrates

The catalytic particle size (Fe) and temperature dependence of multi-walled nanotubes growth from C sub 2 H sub 2 and C sub 60 precursor molecules is studied. The structure and density of the carbon nanotubes produced is critically dependent on the particle size, the growth temperature and the carbon flux rate. Under certain conditions, bundles of single-walled nanotubes, where the bundles appear to consist of nanotubes with the same diameters, can be produced. The nanotubes are characterised by electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy. Field emission properties of aligned films are studied and the electron emission is correlated with light emission measurements.