Zn-INDUCED DENSITY-CONTROLLED GROWTH OF β-SiC NANOTUBES WITH TUNABLE FIELD EMISSION AND HYDROPHOBIC PROPERTIES

Density-controlled single-crystalline β- SiC nanotubes were successfully synthesized on a large scale by adding Zn into the system via direct thermal evaporation of C 60 onto silicon wafers at 1290°C. Interestingly, no Zn elements can be detected in the final products. However, the addition of Zn power is important because without Zn , density-controlled SiC nanotubes cannot be observed in our experiment. On the basis of the results, a possible growth mechanism was proposed to illustrate the role that Zn played in the growth process. The field emission and hydrophobic performances show strong dependence on the densities of as-synthesized β- SiC nanotubes. The density-controlled β- SiC nanotubes with tunable field emission and hydrophobic properties may have potential in the future of nanotechnology.