Using 0-dimensional silica to control diameter and density of carbon nanotubes

A simple and effective method to control the growth of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) by introducing 0-dimensional silica particles has been proposed and demonstrated. After being processed with dip-coating and self-assembly of the specific silica nanoparticles, the substrate surface with nano-scale morphology was obtained, and which helped to control the diameters and density during the CNTs growth in a Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition system. This method improved both diameter distribution and wall number distribution of the CNTs. The CNT density has reached about 6.4×1011 cm^-2. The relation between the nanoparticle size and the CNTs´ physical properties has also been explored.