Method for forming carbon nanotube structure

• US 9,783,420 B2
• Filed: 06/20/2014
• Issued: 10/10/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd., Tsinghua University
• Original Assignee: Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd., Tsinghua University
• Inventors: Wei, Yang, Wei, Hao-Ming, Jiang, Kai-Li, Fan, Shou-Shan
• Primary Examiner(s): Grun, Robert J
• Application Number:
  US14/310,322
• Publication Number:
  US 20150266737A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,208 Days
• CPC Class Codes: C01B 32/16 Preparation
• CPC Class Codes: C01B 32/168 After-treatment
• CPC Class Codes: H01B 1/04 mainly consisting of carbon-silicon compounds, carbon or silicon

Abstract

A method for making a carbon nanotube structure includes providing a substitute substrate, a growing substrate, and a carbon nanotube array, the carbon nanotube array grown on the growing substrate. A carbon nanotube structure can be drawn from the carbon nanotube array. The carbon nanotube structure includes carbon nanotube segments joined end-to-end. The carbon nanotube array is transferred from the growing substrate onto the substitute substrate. During transfer, structural integrity of the carbon nanotube array is maintained. The carbon nanotube structure is drawn from the carbon nanotube array transferred onto the substitute substrate.

Claims

1. A method for forming a carbon nanotube structure, the method comprising:

providing a substitute substrate, a growing substrate, and a carbon nanotube array comprising a plurality of carbon nanotubes grown on the growing substrate, the carbon nanotube array having a bottom surface adjacent to the growing substrate and a top surface away from the growing substrate, the plurality of carbon nanotubes is substantially perpendicular to the top surface, and the carbon nanotube array being configured for drawing a carbon nanotube structure therefrom;

transferring the carbon nanotube array from the growing substrate to the substitute substrate, the plurality of carbon nanotubes is still substantially perpendicular to the top surface after transferring the carbon nanotube array, and the carbon nanotube array still being configured for drawing the carbon nanotube structure therefrom; and

drawing the carbon nanotube structure from the carbon nanotube array on the substitute substrate.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the carbon nanotube structure is a carbon nanotube film or a carbon nanotube wire.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the transferring the carbon nanotube array from the growing substrate to the substitute substrate comprises:

contacting a surface of the substitute substrate to the top surface of the carbon nanotube array; and

separating the substitute substrate from the growing substrate, thereby separating the bottom surface of the carbon nanotube array from the growing substrate.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the surface of the substitute substrate and the top surface of the carbon nanotube array are combined only by van der Waals attractive forces.

5. The method of claim 3, wherein during the separating the carbon nanotube array from the growing substrate, substantially all carbon nanotubes are simultaneously detached from the growing substrate.

6. The method of claim 3, wherein the plurality of carbon nanotubes is detached from the growing substrate along a growing direction of the carbon nanotubes.

7. The method of claim 3, wherein the growing substrate comprises a growing surface for growing the carbon nanotube array, the separating the substitute substrate from the growing substrate comprises moving at least one of the substitute substrate and the growing substrate, a moving direction of at least one of the substitute substrate and the growing substrate is perpendicular to a growing surface of the growing substrate during the moving of the at least one of the substitute substrate and the growing substrate.

8. The method of claim 3, wherein a bonding force between the substitute substrate and the carbon nanotube array is larger than a bonding force between the growing substrate and the carbon nanotube array, and is smaller than van der Waals attractive force between carbon nanotubes in the carbon nanotube array.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein a material of the substitute substrate is poly(dimethylsiloxane).

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the transferring the carbon nanotube array from the growing substrate to the substitute substrate comprises applying a pressing force to the carbon nanotube array by the substitute substrate, and a direction of the pressing force is substantially perpendicular to the growing surface.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the pressing force is defined as f, and f will satisfy 0<

f<

2N/cm².

10. A method for making a carbon nanotube structure, the method comprising:

providing a first substrate, a second substrate, and a carbon nanotube array comprising a plurality of carbon nanotubes grown on the first substrate, the carbon nanotube array having a bottom surface adjacent to the growing substrate and a top surface away from the first substrate, the plurality of carbon nanotubes is substantially perpendicular to the top surface, and the carbon nanotube array being configured for drawing a carbon nanotube structure therefrom;

transferring the carbon nanotube array from the first substrate to the second substrate, the plurality of carbon nanotubes is still substantially perpendicular to the top surface after transferring the carbon nanotube array, and the carbon nanotube array still being configured for drawing the carbon nanotube structure therefrom; and

drawing the carbon nanotube structure from the carbon nanotube array on the second substrate.