Letter abstract
Nature Nanotechnology 4, 108 - 113 (2008)
Published online: 14 December 2008 | doi:10.1038/nnano.2008.363
Subject Categories: Carbon nanotubes and fullerenes | Electronic properties and devices
Imaging the electrical conductance of individual carbon nanotubes with photothermal current microscopy
Adam W. Tsen1, Luke A. K. Donev2, Huseyin Kurt3, Lihong H. Herman1 & Jiwoong Park4
Abstract
The one-dimensional structure of carbon nanotubes1 leads to a variety of remarkable optical2 and electrical3 properties that could be used to develop novel devices4. Recently, the electrical conductance of nanotubes has been shown to decrease under optically induced heating by an amount proportional to the temperature change5. Here, we show that this decrease is also proportional to the initial nanotube conductance, and make use of this effect to develop a new electrical characterization tool for nanotubes. By scanning the focal spot of a laser across the surface of a device through which current is simultaneously measured, we can construct spatially resolved conductance images of both single and arrayed nanotube transistors. We can also directly image the gate control of these devices. Our results establish photothermal current microscopy as an important addition to the existing suite of characterization techniques for carbon nanotubes and other linear nanostructures.
- Department of Applied Physics, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853, USA
- Laboratory of Atomic and Solid-State Physics, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853, USA
- The Rowland Institute at Harvard, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02142, USA
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853, USA
Correspondence to: Jiwoong Park4 e-mail: jpark@cornell.edu
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