Fujitsu Achieves Breakthrough with World's First New Carbon Nanotube Composite
Features Self-organizing Carbon Nanotubes and Graphene
Fujitsu Laboratories Ltd. announced the successful Formation of a new nano-scale carbon composite featuring a self-organizing structure, by combining carbon nanotubes and graphene which are both nano-scale carbon structures.
The newly-discovered composite structure is synthesized at a temperature of 510 C, cooler than for conventional graphene formed at temperatures too high for electronic device applications, thereby paving the way for the feasible use of graphene as a material suitable for future practical use in electronic devices which are vulnerable to heat. Carbon nanotubes have properties including high thermal conductivity and high current-density tolerance, while graphene is known for its high electron mobility. Carbon nanostructures combining these two materials hold the promise of creating new potential for material research and applications.
Due to the fact that carbon nanotubes are linear, one-dimensional structures, in the two-dimensional directions perpendicular to the tube axis they have nearly no thermal or electrical conductivity between tubes. Graphene, on the other hand, possesses electrical and thermal conductivity across two dimensions. The newly-discovered carbon nanostructure is expected to have electrical conduction and thermal dissipation in all directions. Conventionally aligned-growth carbon nanotubes have had relatively poor uniformity in length, thus being inconsistent when joined in the upper areas and resulting in increased thermal and electrical resistance. As the new carbon nanostructures from Fujitsu Labs feature carbon nanotubes that nearly all connect to the graphene with good uniformity at their endpoints, and since the graphene surface is planar, it is anticipated that the new carbon nanostructures will enable excellent electrical and thermal conductivity.
Details of this technology will be presented at the 34th Fullerene Nanotubes General Symposium to be held from March 3 to March 5 in Nagoya, Japan.
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