Effects of fabrication method of Al2O3 buffer layer on Rh-catalyzed growth of single-walled carbon nanotubes by alcohol-gas-source chemical vapor deposition

Abstract Amorphous Al 2 O 3 buffer layers have been widely used to enhance the yield in the growth of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs). In this study, we carried out SWCNT growth using a Rh catalyst on Al 2 O 3 buffer layers that were prepared by three different methods based on electron beam (EB) evaporation: native oxidation of Al layer deposited by EB; thermal oxidation of Al layer deposited by EB; EB deposition of Al 2 O 3 layer. We investigated the effects of fabrication method of the Al 2 O 3 buffer layer on SWCNT yield and found that the SWCNT yield was the largest for Al 2 O 3 layer prepared by EB deposition of Al 2 O 3 , while SWCNTs were not grown on the Al 2 O 3 layer obtained by native oxidation of the Al layer. Based on the results of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, X-ray absorption near-edge structure, and atomic force microscopy, we examined the effects of crystalline quality and oxidation degree of Al 2 O 3 layers on the catalytic activity.