Selective local synthesis of nanowires on a microreactor chip

This work presents a novel synthesis process for selectively locally growing nanowires on a microreactor chip fabricated by MEMS processes. Nanowires are synthesized in a microchamber by patterned catalysts, reactive gases, and integrated microheaters heating the catalysts to the required temperatures for nanowires growth. Using a field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) and a transmission electron microscope (TEM), this paper confirms that the synthesized structures are multi-wall carbon nanotubes (CNT). The average diameter of the CNTs is about 16.93 nm and the length is about 100–200 nm. Applying this novel process, the location of the synthesized CNTs can be positioned onto the microheaters in a controllable way. Furthermore, by means of the developed microheater modeling, the chemical vapor deposition CNTs synthesis process can be conducted in low temperature and a low voltage as small as 7 V is required for the microheaters. The proposed synthesis approach makes it possible to integrate CNTs on IC devices by effectively diminishing thermal damage during their growing process.