In situ study of electrochemical processes of metal nano-nuclei formation, growth, and stability on single carbon microfiber for surface multifunctionalization

With better understanding and control of metal layer formation on carbon surface, the electrical, magnetic, thermal, interfacial, and catalytic characteristics of carbon-based micro- and nanomaterials can be further improved for large-scale engineering applications. Experiments demonstrated that controlled metal electrodeposition on micro- and nanocarbon fibers can be realized in a cost-effective and reproducible fashion. Microbeam synchrotron X-ray diffraction and fluorescence techniques have been developed to provide in situ characterization capabilities to reveal the nuclei formation and growth processes on individual carbon microfibers with size, distribution, and microstructural information. The nuclei stability of the metal deposit is found to have strong dependence on its size as well as the deposition condition.