Novel method of converting metallic-type carbon nanotubes to semiconducting-type carbon nanotube field-effect transistors

Depending on the chirality, single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) can be either metallic or semiconducting. Thus far, the production of SWNTs, irrespective of synthesis methods, still yields a mixture of both types, with the metallic type being prevalent. However, semiconducting-type SWNTs are needed for carbon nanotube field-effect transistors (CNT-FETs) as well as many sensors. This is because only the semiconducting-type SWNTs can be effectively modulated by the gate voltage. In contrast, the lack of field effect in metallic-type SWNTs adversely impacts their applications in high-performance electronic devices. In this study, we demonstrate for the first time a novel plasma treatment method that allows us to convert metallic-type carbon nanotubes to semiconducting-type CNT-FETs. On the basis of our experimental results, we believe that the ion bombardment during Ar plasma treatment attacks both metallic- and semiconducting-type nanotubes; however, the metallic-type carbon nanotubes are more vulnerable to the attack than those of the semiconducting type, and are subsequently transformed into the latter type.