METHOD FOR MANUFACTURING CARBON NANOCOILS

摘要

A method for manufacturing carbon nanocoils which are grown by winding carbon atoms in a helical configuration and which have an external diameter of 1000 nm or less, the method comprising the steps of: placing an indium-tin-iron type catalyst inside a reactor, heating an area around the catalyst to a temperature equal to or greater than temperature at which hydrocarbon used as a raw material is broken down by an action of the catalyst, causing hydrocarbon gas to flow through the reactor so that the gas contacts the catalyst, and allowing carbon nanocoils to grow on a surface of the catalyst while the hydrocarbon is broken down in the vicinity of the catalyst. The indium-tin-iron type catalyst may be obtained by: a mixed catalyst of indium oxide and tin oxide, and a thin film of iron which is formed on a surface of this mixed catalyst.