Formation of metal nanowires on suspended single-walled carbon nanotubes

Suspended single-wall carbon nanotubes are used as substrates for deposition of various metals by evaporation. Deposition of many types of metals normally forms discrete particles on nanotubes due to a weak interaction between the metals and nanotubes. However, continuous nanowires of virtually any metal are obtained by using titanium, a metal with strong interaction with carbon, as a buffer layer on nanotubes. The metal nanowires can be less than or equal to 10 nm wide with continuous length up to tens of microns. (C) 2000 American Institute of Physics. [S0003-6951(00)05545-5].