Growth of vertically aligned carbon nanofibers and attachment of TiO2 nanoparticles

Carbon nanofibers (CNFs) with mean diameters of 37-125 nm were catalytically grown on permalloy-coated substrates by thermal chemical vapor deposition using ethanol containing a trace of carbon disulfide. The diameters and orientation of the CNFs were changed depending on the size and distribution of the permalloy catalyst particles. After increasing particle size and decreasing the space between adjacent particles, about 60% of the vertically aligned (VA) CNFs contained Y-junctions. We also formed composite structures of anatase-type TiO2 nanoparticles (about 10-70 nm in diameter) supported by the VACNFs by pulsed laser deposition.