Fabrication of carbon microtubes from thin films of supramolecular assemblies via self-rolling approach

Abstract

We demonstrate a novel approach for the fabrication of carbon and carbon–metal hybrid microtubes with very high aspect ratio using self-rolled polymer multilayers as templates. The polymer multilayer consisted of at least one layer formed by the supramolecular assemblies of a homopolymer with a low molecular weight molecule capable of forming resin which further acted as the carbon source. The approach described here is versatile and could be used to fabricate any type of carbon–metal tube. Furthermore, the experimental parameters could be tuned to produce even porous carbon and carbon based hybrid microtubes. These microtubes have potential applications in microelectronic, microfluidic devices, and chemical and biochemical sensing devices.