NANOTUBE AND GRAPHENE SEMICONDUCTOR STRUCTURES WITH VARYING ELECTRICAL PROPERTIES

Anthony D. KURTZ

Patent

Atlas literature

Patent

US 8,044,472

NANOTUBE AND GRAPHENE SEMICONDUCTOR STRUCTURES WITH VARYING ELECTRICAL PROPERTIES

Anthony D. Kurtz, Adam Hurst

2011-10-25·US

Claims

Claims define the patent's legal scope. Independent claims stand alone; dependent claims (nested) narrow them. Click a claim to expand its dependents.

3 independent · 19 dependent

1
Independentgraphenegraphene piezoresistive transducer
A transducer comprising: a substrate a plurality of graphene semiconductive structures located entirely on a surface of the substrate, each of the graphene semiconductive structures being supported along its entire length by the substrate, wherein an electrical property of the graphene semiconductive structures changes with an applied force; one or more metal pads securing at least one of the graphene semiconductive structures to the substrate; and a circuit coupled to at least some of the graphene semiconductive structures to provide an output responsive to the change in the electrical property, the output being indicative of the applied force.
1. 2
  Dependent← claim 1multilayer graphenegraphene piezoresistive transducer
  The transducer of Claim 1, the plurality of graphene semiconductive structures being multilayer graphene having controlled band gaps.
2. 3
  Dependent← claim 1graphenegraphene piezoresistive transducer
  The transducer of Claim 1, the metal pads connecting the graphene semiconductive structures into a Wheatstone Bridge conﬁguration
3. 4
  Dependent← claim 1graphenegraphene piezoresistive transducer
  The transducer of Claim 1, the metal pads being deposited on the substrate by thermal evaporation, electron beam evaporation, or sputtering.
4. 5
  Dependent← claim 1graphenegraphene piezoresistive transducer
  The transducer of Claim 1, the plurality of graphene semiconductive structures being arranged in a predetermined orientation and location.
5. 7
  Dependent← claim 1graphenegraphene piezoresistive transducer
  The transducer of Claim 1, the applied force changing the resistance of at least some of the plurality of graphene semiconductive structures.
8
Independentgraphenenanotubesnanotube or graphene bridge circuit transducer
A transducer comprising: a substrate; a plurality of structures on a surface of the substrate, the plurality of structures having varying electrical properties, wherein an electrical property of the structures changes with a predetermined external condition, and wherein at least two of the structures are connected to each other by a conductive material to form a bridge circuit; and one or more metal pads securing at least one of the plurality of structures to the surface of the substrate and forming an electrical connection to the at least one of the plurality of structures; wherein the predetermined external condition causes a predictable change in current through the bridge circuit; and wherein the structures comprise nanotubes or graphene.
1. 9
  Dependent← claim 8graphenenanotubesnanotube or graphene bridge circuit transducer
  The transducer of Claim 8, the predetermined external condition being an application of force to the substrate.
2. 11
  Dependent← claim 8graphenenanotubesnanotube or graphene bridge circuit transducer
  The transducer of Claim 8, the predetermined external condition being the presence of a chemical in the environment.
3. 12
  Dependent← claim 8SiSiO₂Si₃N₄SiCCnanotube or graphene bridge circuit transducer
  The transducer of Claim 8, the plurality of structures comprising nanotubes selected from silicon, silicon dioxide, silicon nitride, silicon carbide, carbon, or combinations thereof.
4. 13
  Dependent← claim 8graphenenanotubesnanotube or graphene bridge circuit transducer
  The transducer of Claim 8, at least some of the plurality of structures being grown via chemical vapor deposition in an atomically aligned substrate.
5. 14
  Dependent← claim 8graphenenanotubesnanotube or graphene bridge circuit transducer
  The transducer of Claim 8, further comprising an electrical contact located underneath the substrate, the electrical contact enabling application of a bias to at least a portion of the plurality of structures.
15
Independentgraphene
A method of forming a transducer comprising: providing a substrate; disposing one or more graphene structures on a surface of the substrate, the graphene structures having an electrical property that varies with an applied force; and selectively making an electrical connection to the one or more graphene structures using metal contact pads to form a bridge circuit having a plurality of force sensitive bridge elements; wherein application of a force to the substrate causes a change in current through the bridge circuit according to the applied force. withdrawn
1. 16
  Dependent← claim 15graphene
  The method of claim 15, selectively making an electrical connection to the one or more graphene structures further comprises using metal interconnects, in combination with the metal contact pads, to form the bridge circuit. withdrawn
2. 17
  Dependent← claim 15graphene
  The method of claim 15, further comprising securing the graphene structures to the surface of the substrate using the metal contact pads. withdrawn
3. 18
  Dependent← claim 15graphene
  The method of claim 15, wherein disposing the plurality of graphene structures on the surface of the substrate comprises mixing the graphene structures to form a solution and applying the solution to the substrate surface. withdrawn
4. 19
  Dependent← claim 15SiSiCSiO₂Si₃N₄Chigh strain polymer substrate
  The method of claim 15, the provided substrate being silicon, silicon carbide, silicon dioxide, silicon nitride, carbon, a high strain polymer, sapphire, or a metal alloy containing carbon or nickel. withdrawn
5. 20
  Dependent← claim 15graphene
  The method of claim 15, the force sensitive elements being coupled to form a Wheatstone Bridge. withdrawn
6. 21
  Dependent← claim 15graphene
  The method of claim 15, further comprising controlling the geometry, orientation, and location of the graphene structures during chemical vapor deposition. withdrawn
7. 22
  Dependent← claim 15graphene
  The method of claim 15, further comprising an electrical contact pad connected underneath the substrate, the electrical contact pad enabling a bias to be applied to the graphene structures.

Device structures

Layer stacks claimed or described, ordered top of device to substrate.

graphene piezoresistive transducer

metal_contact_padsmetal contact pads

graphenesemiconductive sensing element

substratesubstrate

nanotube or graphene bridge circuit transducer

metal_contact_padsmetal contact pads

nanotubessemiconductive sensing element

Materials

Materials described outside the worked examples.

graphene

Claimed Semiconductive Sensing Element

multilayer graphene

Claimed Semiconductive Sensing Element With Controlled Band Gap

Process steps

Additional fabrication and treatment steps described in the patent.

Cvd Growth

Step 1

Process details

substrate:atomically aligned substrate

Materials:graphenenanotubes

Why these are connected

Related documents with shared materials, methods, properties, or citations.

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