Controlled removal of individual carbon nanotubes from vertically aligned arrays for advanced nanoelectrodes†

A simple but effective method has been developed to controllably extract carbon nanotubes (CNTs) from their vertically aligned arrays on growth substrates. The intrinsic micron-scale roughness of the CNT surface enables the protruding nanotubes to make good contact with an adhesive layer which can then remove them from the array on the growth substrate. This approach allows us to manage and tailor the surface morphologies and related surface properties of CNT arrays. The patterned structure of CNT arrays with region-selective control over the density has been achieved. The ability of this process to tailor spacing between vertically aligned CNTs, as demonstrated, opens a new pathway to fabricate the CNT nanoelectrode arrays for applications in electroanalysis.