On the growth and microstructure of carbon nanotubes grown by thermal chemical vapor deposition.

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were deposited on various substrates namely untreated silicon and quartz, Fe-deposited silicon and quartz, HF-treated silicon, silicon nitride-deposited silicon, copper foil, and stainless steel mesh using thermal chemical vapor deposition technique. The optimum parameters for the growth and the microstructure of the synthesized CNTs on these substrates are described. The results show that the growth of CNTs is strongly influenced by the substrate used. Vertically aligned multi-walled CNTs were found on quartz, Fe-deposited silicon and quartz, untreated silicon, and on silicon nitride-deposited silicon substrates. On the other hand, spaghetti-type growth was observed on stainless steel mesh, and no CNT growth was observed on HF-treated silicon and copper. Silicon nitride-deposited silicon substrate proved to be a promising substrate for long vertically aligned CNTs of length 110-130 μm. We present a possible growth mechanism for vertically aligned and spaghetti-type growth of CNTs based on these results.