Local Etching of Insulator-Coated Carbon Nanotubes towards Passivated Nanoprobes

Abstract

We present a method for local etching of the tip region of insulator-coated carbon nanotubes (CNTs) towards passivated nanoprobes. By reactive ion etching (RIE), a 20-nm-thick SiO2 layer, which was uniformly wrapped around vertically oriented CNTs, was selectively removed from the tip, maintaining the crystallinity of inner CNT. It was found that the length of exposed CNT is controlled via etching time at an etching rate of 16 nm/min. This local etching was achieved by RIE using CF4 as an etchant, and photoresist as a passivation mask.

Synthesis of Nanostructured Hybrid between Carbon Nanotube and Inorganic Material towards Nanodevice Application

“…We also demonstrate local etching of the thin layer-coated CNTs by reactive ion etching (RIE) [39]. Figure 9(a) shows the PLD apparatus used for coating CNTs with a thin layer.…”

“…Next, we demonstrate a method for the local etching of insulator-coated CNTs by RIE with high controllability of the exposed tip length [39]. Figure 14 shows the experimental procedure for fabricating passivated nanoprobe structures.…”

MEMS process compatibility of multiwall carbon nanotubes

“…The nanotubes also showed extensive obvious damage throughout their lengths, as well as substantial curvature. 8. Sulfur hexafluoride and oxygen (SF 6 =O 2 ) RIE The addition of oxygen to an SF 6 plasma increases the etch rate of Si at the expense of reduced selectivity over photoresist.…”

“…Carbon nanotubes have recently seen increasing use in microelectromechanical system (MEMS) devices [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15] due to their small size, high strength, and unique electrical and thermal properties. However, while CNTs have been successfully incorporated into devices using some standard MEMS processes, the literature has in general explored only those processes that are directly relevant to the fabrication of a particular device.…”

Quantitative Control over Electrodeposition of Silica Films onto Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube Surfaces

“…Silica coated MWNTs have been prepared using a pulsed laser deposition method wherein the thickness of the layer was varied between 2 and 28 nm. 23,24 SWNTs have been coated with a thin layer of SiO 2 (1 nm) using 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane as a coupling agent. 25 SWNTs have been derivatized with a fluorine-doped silica layer through a liquid-phase deposition (LPD) process using a silica-H 2 SiF 6 solution and a surfactant-stabilized solution of SWNTs.…”