Carbon nanotube growth at 420 °C using nickel/carbon composite thin films as catalyst supports

Nickel/carbon composite (Ni/C) thin films were used as catalyst supports for the growth of vertically aligned multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) at temperature as low as 420 degrees C. Nickel nanoparticles embedded within the carbon matrix of Ni/C films have served as catalysts for the synthesis of nanotubes by PECVD using acetylene/ammonia plasma. Two different nickel contents (40 at.% and 60 at.%) in the films were used. Analysis indicated a diffusion of nickel atoms in the form of nanoparticles to the film surface upon annealing. This diffusion depends on both annealing temperature and nickel concentration in the films and affects the MWCNT growth at low temperature. The MWCNT synthesis was tested at growth temperature ranging between 335 and 520 degrees C. The growth of MWCNTs at 420 degrees C was only achieved by using Ni/C films with a high nickel content (60 at.%). These MWCNTs did not present considerable loss in their growth rate and structural quality compared to MWCNTs grown on classical substrates (Ni catalysts deposited on TiN), at higher temperature (520-600 degrees C). The results suggest that carbon saturation at the surface and subsurface of nickel catalysts of the Ni/C films is responsible for the improvement of MWCNT growth at low temperature. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.