Electric field orientation of carbon nanotubes

A method for manufacturing a carbon nanotube device, the method comprising:

• forming a layer of conductive material on an insulative substrate;
• etching a trench in the layer of conductive material and exposing the insulative substrate at the bottom of the trench;
• forming catalyst material on portions of the layer of conductive material at opposing sides of the trench;
• coupling electrical leads to the conductive material at opposite sides of the trench and applying an electric field across the trench via the electrical leads;
• and
• using the electric field for alignment, heating the substrate while introducing molecules to the catalyst material and growing an aligned carbon nanotube extending from the catalyst material and across the trench, the carbon nanotube extending in a direction aligned with the electric field.

A method for manufacturing a carbon nanotube, the method comprising:

• providing a polysilicon film structure on an insulative substrate, the polysilicon film structure having parallel trenches separated by polysilicon lines and having polysilicon pads on opposite sides of the parallel trenches;
• forming a liquid-phase catalyst precursor film on an upper surface of the polysilicon film;
• calcining the polysilicon film structure and removing organic components therefrom;
• placing the substrate on an insulating structure in a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) chamber;
• electrically coupling the polysilicon pads to metal leads and applying a voltage to the pads to establish an electric field across the trenches, the electric field being adapted to align carbon nanotubes as they are being formed;
• and
• heating the chamber, introducing a gas comprising methane and hydrogen to the polysilicon structure and forming carbon nanotubes extending between the upper surfaces of the polysilicon separated by the trenches, the carbon nanotubes being suspended over the trenches and aligned with the electric field.

A method for manufacturing a carbon nanotube device, the method comprising:

• forming an insulative substrate on a wafer;
• forming metal electrodes on the insulative substrate;
• forming catalyst material on the metal electrodes;
• and
• simultaneously applying an electric field to the device while growing an aligned carbon nanotube extending between the metal electrodes, wherein forming an insulative substrate on a wafer and applying an electric field to the device includes forming the insulative substrate and applying the electric field in a manner that inhibits van der Waals binding of the aligned carbon nanotube during nanotube growth while achieving orientation of the nanotube with the electric field.