CoFe2O4 nanoparticles as a catalyst: synthesis of a forest of vertically aligned CNTs of uniform diameters by plasma-enhanced CVD

Controlling actively the structures of carbon nanotubes such as the alignment, length, diameter, chirality and the number of walls still remains a crucial challenge. The properties of CNTs are highly structure sensitive and particularly dependent on the diameter and number of walls. In this brief communication, we synthesise monodisperse CoFe2O4 nanoparticles of uniform diameters, i.e. 4.8 and 6.9 nm, which are modified with oleic acid as a catalyst for the growth of CNTs. We show that a forest of vertically aligned CNTs of uniform diameters and lengths can be grown using CoFe2O4 nanoparticles. The internal diameters and lengths of CNTs grown using CoFe2O4 nanoparticles of 4.8 and 6.9 nm diameters are, respectively, 4.4 and 6.2 nm and 10 and 15 μm. It is clearly shown that the number of walls of CNTs can be engineered changing the materials of the catalytic nanoparticles. The present results may well encourage further systematic studies on the growth of CNTs using various combinations of elements for the catalytic nanoparticles under different external conditions, which may provide not only the possibilities of controlling the properties of CNTs but also an insight into the nucleation and growth mechanisms.