Carbon nanotubes coated with diamond nanocrystals and silicon carbide by hot-filament chemical vapor deposition below 200 °C substrate temperature

Abstract Multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) dispersed onto a silicon substrate have been coated with diamond nanocrystals (DNC) and silicon carbide (SiC) from solid carbon and silicon sources exposed to H 2 activated by hot filament chemical vapor deposition (HFCVD) at around 190 °C substrate temperature. MWCNT coating by DNC initiates during filament carburization process at 80 °C substrate temperature under conventional HFCVD conditions. The hybrid nanocarbon material was analyzed by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, electron energy loss spectroscopy, selected area electron diffraction, X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy. The structure of the MWCNTs is preserved during coating and the smooth DNC/SiC coating is highly conformal. The average grain size is below 10 nm. The growth mechanism of DNC and SiC onto MWCNT surface is discussed.