Attachment of Carbon Nanotubes to a Substrate by Electron-Beam-Induced Structural Change of Fullerene Molecules

We investigated the high-strength, electrically conductive attachment of carbon nanotubes on Pt-coated Si substrates. In a layer of a few molecules deposited on the substrate, C₆₀ molecules changed their cage structure to form a graphitic structure by the irradiation of a convergent electron beam with ca. $3\times 10^{8}$ electrons$\cdot$nm^-2. This structural change at the contact region between the nanotube and the substrate functioned effectively to attach the nanotube to the substrate. The attachment force was greater than 100 nN, which is comparable to the tensile strength of a 1-nm-thick nanotube. ©2010