Electrical and thermal coupling to a single-wall carbon nanotube device using an electrothermal nanoprobe

We utilize a multifunctional atomic force microscope (AFM) cantilever applying highly localized temperature and electric fields to interrogate transport in single-wall carbon nanotube field-effect transistors (CNTFETs). The probe can be operated either in contact with the CNT, in intermittent contact, or as a Kelvin probe, and can independently control the electric field, mechanical force, and temperature applied to the CNT. We modulate current flow in the CNT with tip-applied electric field, and find this field-effect depends upon both cantilever heating and CNT self-heating. CNT transport is also investigated with AFM tip temperature up to 1170 °C. Tip-CNT thermal resistance is estimated at 1.6 × 10 ⁷ K/W and decreases with increasing temperature. Threshold force (<100 nN) for reliable contact mode imaging is extracted and used to determine set points for nanotube manipulation, such as displacement or cutting. The ability to measure thermal coupling to a single-molecule electronic device could offer new insights into nanoelectronic devices.