Low Dimensional carbon nanostructures such as Graphene and Carbon Nanotubes (CNTs) are novel forms of carbon, which have unique electrical, structural, and chemical properties. We have demonstrated growth of these materials through the preferential sublimation of silicon from crystalline SiC at high temperature. Specifically, we find vertically aligned multi-wall CNT’s are produced when the SiC wafers are annealed in high vacuum (HV) conditions at temperatures ranging from 1200 to 1700°C. Epitaxial graphene forms under ultra high vacuum (UHV) conditions at temperatures above 1200°C and in Argon atmospheric pressure in temperatures above 1500°C. In this talk, we present growth and characterization of these and other related carbon nanostructured materials. Our applications for these materials include high performance transistors, electron field emission sources, and chemical sensors.
US Air Force Research Laboratory , Wright Patterson AFB, Dayton, Ohio, USA