Preparing nanoparticles and carbon nanotubes

1. A method for forming catalyst nanoparticles, the method comprising:

selecting a film thickness of a film of a catalyst material to control for a predetermined effective nanoparticle diameter of the catalyst nanoparticles;

depositing the film of the catalyst material having the selected film thickness in a pattern on and contacting a substrate wherein the catalyst material is capable of being used for forming non-amorphous carbon nanotubes; and

heating the deposited catalyst material causing the deposited catalyst material to disperse forming separated catalyst nanoparticles from the deposited material on and contacting the substrate within the pattern, wherein heating the deposited catalyst material causes the formation of the catalyst nanoparticles with substantially uniform dispersity of the effective nanoparticle diameter.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein depositing the catalyst material includes depositing a metal film, in which the metal is selected from one or any alloy or other combination of nickel, iron, cobalt, alloy of cobalt and platinum, alloy of iron and platinum, alloy of cobalt and molybdenum, alloy of iron and molybdenum, alloy of nickel and molybdenum, copper, and gold.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the predetermined effective nanoparticle diameter of the catalyst nanoparticles in a range from 0.1 nanometers to 100 nanometers.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein depositing the film of the catalyst material includes depositing the film of the catalyst material on and in contact with a dielectric layer of the substrate.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein depositing the film of the catalyst material includes depositing the film of the catalyst material on a substrate that includes one or more of silicon, sapphire, quartz, alumina, a silicate, a nitride, GaN, InN, AlN or Si 3 N 4 , germanium, tin, GaAs, InP, SiC, or ZnSe.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein heating the deposited catalyst material comprises heating the catalyst material in a furnace while feeding a gas comprising an inert gas to the furnace at a flow rate of from about 40 sccm to about 800 sccm.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein heating the deposited catalyst material comprises heating the catalyst material for a period of from about 10 minutes to about 1 hour and to a temperature of from about 500° C. to about 950° C. to form the separated catalyst nanoparticles.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein heating the deposited catalyst material comprises heating the catalyst material to a temperature of from about 700° C. to about 900° C. to form the separated catalyst nanoparticles.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the film of the catalyst material has a thickness of about 1 nanometer or less.

10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the predetermined effective nanoparticle diameter of the catalyst nanoparticles is from about 1 nm to about 20 nm.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein depositing the film of the catalyst material comprises depositing the film along only one side of the substrate proximate an edge of the substrate.

12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the substrate comprises a material that is stable at temperatures of from about 500° C. to about 950° C.

13. The method of claim 1 , further comprising selecting the predetermined effective nanoparticle diameter of the catalyst nanoparticles to control for a predetermined nanotube diameter of the carbon nanotubes to be formed on the catalyst nanoparticles.

14. The method of claim 1 , further comprising forming the non-amorphous carbon nanotubes having the predetermined nanotube diameter of from about 0.3 nanometers to about 4 nanometers.