Controlled deposition of individual single-walled carbon nanotubes on chemically functionalized templates

Carbon nanotubes offer great promise as molecular wires because they exhibit high electrical conductivity and chemical stability. However, constructing nanotube-based electronic devices requires a controlled means of assembling the tubes. We report procedures both for producing individual short SWNT segments and for their reliable deposition on chemically functionalized nanolithographic templates. Using this method, we have positioned individual nanotubes at specific locations and orientations in such a way that the nanotubes contact metal electrodes. This discovery is potentially very important for fabrication of simple electrical circuits with nanotubes, and provides a new tool for study of electron transport in nanotubes.