NANO-TUBE, NANO-TUBE PROBE, AND THEIR MANUFACTURE

摘要

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain nano-tube probes having the same physical structure at their front end sections by providing sensor sections for ultrafine particles, fullerene, etc., at the front ends of nano-tubes. SOLUTION: A Ni metal film 4 having a thickness of about 10 nm is formed on the surface of a silicon substrate 2 carrying an iron oxide on its surface by vapor deposition and the degree of vacuum in a cylindrical container having a diameter of about 28 mm and a length of about 50 cm is maintained at about 60 Torr by making an He gas to flow in the container at a flow rate of about 50 sccm. When the metallic film 4 is heat-treated for bout one hour by heating the temperature of the film 4 to about 800 deg.C at a temperature-rise rate of about 120 deg.C/min, the film 4 converts to many ultrafine Ni particles 6 having diameters of about 20 nm. When a C6H6 gas is allowed to flow in the container at a flow rate of about 10 sccm for about one hour by maintaining the degree of vacuum at about 60 Torr thereafter, carbon atoms accumulate in the lower ends of the particles 6 due to the dehydration catalytic reaction of the particles 6 and nano-tubes 8 are formed. The nano-tubes 8 grow by pushing up the particles 6 and form carbon nano-tubes 10 having ultrafine particles.