- 9 March 2006 -

Keithley helps unlock secrets of carbon nanotubes

Keithley Instruments, Inc., said that its Model 4200 Semiconductor Characterization System conforms to and supports the just-released IEEE standard for electrical testing of carbon nanotubes.

Nanotechnology requires the measurement of very small currents and voltages, capabilities that Keithley has pioneered for 60 years. Keithley is seen by many nanotechnologists as a key enabler of their work. These researchers depend on Keithley's measurement expertise and knowledge to help them unlock the secrets at the nanoscale level and accelerate the jump from the nanotech research lab to commercial production.

The recently approved IEEE 1650TM-2005 standard, known as "Standard Methods for Measurement of Electrical Properties of Carbon Nanotubes," gives the burgeoning nanotechnology industry one uniform and common set of recommended testing and data reporting procedures for evaluating the electrical properties of carbon nanotubes. The Model 4200 is a core measurement platform for engineers involved in nanotech materials research.

A carbon nanotube is a tubular structure that has become a major focus of nanomaterials research because it displays a variety of exciting properties for creating nanoscale, low power consumption electronic devices. A nanotube can even act as a biological or chemical sensing device in some applications, or as a carrier for individual atoms.

Keithley Instruments provided the standards committee with a variety of testing apparatus recommendations and measurement practices for making electrical measurements on carbon nanotubes in order to minimize and/or characterize the effect of measurement artifacts and other sources of measurement error encountered when making measurements on carbon nanotubes.

The new testing standard should aid in the commercialization of nanotubes by providing uniformity between lab researchers and design engineers eager to put lab results into commercial use on the production line. Recommended measurement data to report as specified in the new standard include electrical resistivity, conductivity, carrier mobility, and non-linear behaviours.

A number of key international test and measurement and carbon nanotube leaders from industry, academia, and government organizations sat on the IEEE committee. Jonathan Tucker, the standard's secretary and representative from Keithley says, "The new standard will greatly aid in accelerating the commercialization of nanoscale materials and electronic devices for the semiconductor industry, along with many other industries.

Customers buying carbon nanotubes can now speak the same language as vendors when it comes to the electrical properties and quality of the products they're purchasing."

To learn more about Keithley products used in nanotechnology measurement applications, and for a free copy of a brochure Measurement Solutions for Nanoscale Device and Materials, visit:

Web: http://www.keithley.com/applications/research/#10