Enhancing electrical properties of carbon nanotubes thin films by silicon incorporation

Abstract

Silicon incorporated carbon nanotube (Si-CNTs) thin films was prepared by radio frequency plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition technique. Tetraethyl orthosilicate solution was used for incorporation of silicon in CNTs thin films. Energy dispersive X-ray analysis shows that the silicon atomic percentage was varied from 0 % to 6.1 %. The chemical binding energies of carbon and silicon were analyzed from X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy data. The various peaks at ~531 eV, ~ 285 eV, ~155 eV and ~104 eV was observed in the XPS spectra due to the oxygen, carbon and silicon respectively. Surface morphologies of Si-CNTs thin films have been analyzed by field emission scanning electron microscopy, which revels that the length of the silicon incorporated carbon nanotubes ~500 nm and corresponding diameter ~80 nm. The room temperature electrical conductivity was increased whereas the activation energy was decreased with the increase of atomic percentage of silicon in Si-CNTs thin films. The room temperature electrical conductivity was increased from 4.3 × 103 to 7.1 × 104 S cm−1 as the silicon atomic percentage in Si-CNTs thin films increases from 0 to 6.1 % respectively.