Carbon nanotube synthesis for nanopore devices

US8470408B2 · kind B2 · utility

Assignee

• President and Fellows of Harvard College · US

Inventors

• Daniel Branton · Lexington, US
• Jene A. Golovchenko · Lexington, US
• Slaven Garaj · Cambridge, US
• Dimitar Vlassarev · Cambridge, US
• El-Hadi S. Sadki · Abu Dhabi, AE

Key dates

• Filing date: Oct 2, 2008
• Grant date: Jun 25, 2013
• Expiry date: Jan 18, 2032

Classification

• Technology area (CPC G): Physics
• CPC primary: G01N33/48721
• WIPO field: Measurement
• WIPO sector: Instruments

Abstract

In a process for fabricating a nanopore device, at least one carbon nanotube catalyst region is formed on a structure. A plurality of nanopores is formed in the structure at a distance from the catalyst region that is no greater than about an expected length for a carbon nanotube synthesized from the catalyst region. Then at least one carbon nanotube is synthesized from the catalyst region. This fabrication sequence enables the in situ synthesis of carbon nanotubes at the site of nanopores, whereby one or more nanotubes articulate one or more nanopores without requiring manual positioning of the nanotubes.