Ultrathin Films of Single‐Walled Carbon Nanotubes for Electronics and Sensors: A Review of Fundamental and Applied Aspects

Abstract

Ultrathin films of single‐walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) represent an attractive, emerging class of material, with properties that can approach the exceptional electrical, mechanical, and optical characteristics of individual SWNTs, in a format that, unlike isolated tubes, is readily suitable for scalable integration into devices. These features suggest the potential for realistic applications as conducting or semiconducting layers in diverse types of electronic, optoelectronic and sensor systems. This article reviews recent advances in assembly techniques for forming such films, modeling and experimental work that reveals their collective properties, and engineering aspects of implementation in sensors and in electronic devices and circuits with various levels of complexity. A concluding discussion provides some perspectives on possibilities for future work in fundamental and applied aspects.

Fundamental Performance Limits of Carbon Nanotube Thin-Film Transistors Achieved Using Hybrid Molecular Dielectrics

“…12,13 First, high field-effect mobility (high transconductance) is necessary to achieve large voltage gain inverters in high speed circuits.…”

Site-Specific Deposition of Au Nanoparticles in CNT Films by Chemical Bonding

“…is largely determined by the nature of the contact at the nodeOthat is, the intersection of overlapping CNTs. To our knowledge, there has been no work to date on selective modification of the nodes in CNT networks, and we report here on such an effort, with an eye towards improving the transparent electrode performance of such networks.Transparent electrical conductors are a key component in modern technology, used in various applications 1,8,9 including, but not limited to, solar cells, flat panel displays, solid state lighting, still-image recorders, lasers, optical communication devices, electrodes in flexible electronics, and sensitive bolometers for detecting infrared radiation. Transparent conductive films (TCFs) based on CNTs are a promising candidate for potential use in all of the above applications and have been touted as a possible replacement for the currently used indium tin oxide (ITO) films.…”

Empirical evaluation of attractive van der Waals potentials for type-purified single-walled carbon nanotubes

“…Recent advances in the separation of SWCNTs by length and electronic type, however, have ushered in a new era of research focused on the physical attributes and potential applications of highly monodisperse nanotube materials. [17][18][19][20][21][22] In particular, such purified SWCNTs show tremendous promise for flexible electronics applications, 23 where the mechanics of vdW contact forces will play a potentially profound role in dictating device durability and performance. 24,25 One recent study, for example, offered compelling evidence that electronic type can have a significant influence on the durability of flexible transparent SWCNT films, with metallic nanotubes offering improved performance over semiconducting nanotubes.…”