Machining Carbon Nanotubes into Uniform Slices

2007 ◽  
Vol 7 (12) ◽  
pp. 4473-4477 ◽  
Author(s):  
Changhong Liu ◽  
Hua Huang ◽  
Pengcheng Song ◽  
Shoushan Fan
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Nanotubes ◽  
High Strength ◽  
Machining Process ◽  
Thermal Interface Materials ◽  
Thermal Interface ◽  
Cnt Arrays ◽  
Vertically Aligned ◽  
Novel Method ◽  
Interface Materials ◽  
Very High

Shearing the carbon nanotubes (CNTs) to desired size or trimming the CNT tips conveniently is usually necessary for many applications. CNTs are normally believed possessing very high strength and toughness. In this paper we present a simple and novel method to actualize this process. In this method, aligned CNT arrays were embedded in paraffin matrix, and then the materials were carefully sliced up along the direction normal to the CNTs with a microtome. These slices consisted of vertically aligned CNTs with desired and uniform length. The experiments proved that there were enough interaction forces between the CNTs and the paraffin matrix to prevent the CNTs from being pulled out during the machining process. These sheared CNTs have shown better performance for thermal interface materials and field emission applications. This process may redound to unlocking the great potential of CNT applications.

Synthesis of Vertically Aligned Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes on Copper Substrates for Applications as Thermal Interface Materials

2009 ◽  
Vol 1158 ◽  
Author(s):  
WEI LIN ◽  
Chingping Wong
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Nanotubes ◽  
Iron Catalyst ◽  
Copper Substrate ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Commercial Application ◽  
Thermal Interface Materials ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Thermal Interface ◽  
Vertically Aligned ◽  
Interface Materials

AbstractVertically aligned carbon nanotubes (VACNTs) grown on bulk copper substrate are of great importance for CNT real-life applications as thermal interface materials in microelectronic packaging. However, their reproducible synthesis has been a great challenge so far. In this study, by introducing a well-controlled conformal Al2O3 support layer on the bulk copper substrate by atomic layer deposition (ALD) prior to the deposition of the iron catalyst layer, we reproducibly synthesize VACNTs of good alignment and high quality on the copper substrate, using a conventional thermal chemical vapor deposition process. The alignment and the quality are characterized by scanning electronic microscopy and Raman spectroscopy, respectively. The roles of the conformal Al2O3 support layer are discussed. A kinetics-controlled growth mechanism is shown. This progress provides a viable VACNT commercial application for thermal management, on the basis of which, we show a recent progress on a state-of-art Si/VACNT/Cu assembling process, named “chemical anchoring”. The high quality of the VACNTs on the copper growth substrate and the covalent bonding formed between the VACNTs and the silicon mating substrate greatly reduces the thermal resistance of the VACNT-mediated thermal interface.

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