PREPARATION OF NANOWIRES AND MICROARRAYS

We report on the synthesis of one-dimensional (1D) solid nanostructures and ordered microarrays consisting of nanowires and carbon nanotubes. For 1D nanostructures, several synthesis methods, such as, carbothermal reduction of silica xerogels containing carbon nanoparticles, chemical vapor deposition on mesoporous active carbon with transition metal catalyst nanoparticles inside the pores, and simple physical evaporation with the help of transition metal nanoparticles as catalysts, have been used. For microarrays, anodic alumina membranes (AAMs) with highly ordered honeycomb structure were used as templates, chemical vapor reaction inside the nanochannels, Sol-gel technique, and selective electrodeposition in the channels, have been used to prepare microarrays embedded in AAMs.