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Sulfur impregnation of multi‐walled carbon nanotubes via SF 6 /NH 3 plasma exposure
Author(s) -
Muench Jakob E.,
Akinoglu Eser M.,
Giersig Michael
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
physica status solidi (rrl) – rapid research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.786
H-Index - 68
eISSN - 1862-6270
pISSN - 1862-6254
DOI - 10.1002/pssr.201600420
Subject(s) - carbon nanotube , sulfur , materials science , carbon fibers , sulfur hexafluoride , plasma , silicon , substrate (aquarium) , scanning electron microscope , ammonia , chemical engineering , nanotechnology , composite material , chemistry , composite number , organic chemistry , optoelectronics , physics , oceanography , quantum mechanics , geology , engineering , metallurgy
Plasma treatments are established methods to functionalise carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and modify their surface structure. This paper presents a mild glow‐discharge plasma treatment of aligned arrays of multi‐walled carbon nanotubes employing sulfur hexafluoride (SF 6 ), ammonia (NH 3 ), and their mixtures as process gases. For the latter, sulfur was detected at the tip and sidewalls of the nanotubes via energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy, while electron microscopy served as method to verify the structural integrity of the CNTs after the plasma treatment. This approach provides the basis for an easy and quick alternative to existing sulfur functionalisation methods of MWCNTs. Furthermore, the proposed method can conveniently be applied to carbon nanotube arrays on substrate while preserving their structure and alignment.SEM‐EDX map of SF 6 /NH 3 plasma‐treated multi‐walled carbon nanotubes on substrate. Green, yellow and red correspond to silicon, carbon and sulfur signals, respectively.