Large-scale synthesis of highly aligned nitrogen doped carbon nanotubes by injection chemical vapor deposition methods

In this study, we compare the effects of pyridine (C₅H₅N) and pyrimidine (C₄H₄N₂) precursors, using ferrocene as a metal source, in the production of nitrogen containing multiwalled carbon nanotubes. Using standard chemical vapor deposition techniques, highly aligned mats of carbon-nitrogen carbon nanotube were synthesized. The maximum nitrogen concentration in these materials is between 1% and 2% when pyridine is used as the precursor and can be increased to 3.2% when pyrimidine is used as the precursor. However, the electronic structure of both materials, as determined using scanning tunneling spectroscopy, suggests that the nitrogen is incorporated into the nanotube lattice in the same way for both precursors.