Abstract: Systems and methods for synthesizing long carbon nanotubes and using the nanotube as an electrical conductor. A substrate is provided with one or more metal underlayer platforms that allow the nanotube to grow freely suspended from the substrate. A modified gas-flow injector is used to reduce the gas flow turbulence during nanotube growth. Nanotube electrodes are formed by growing arrays of aligned nanotubes between two metal underlayer platforms.

Abstract: An electronics component is disclosed herein. The electronics component include a substrate and a plurality of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) formed on said substrate, wherein said plurality of SWNTs form a patterned, dense and high-quality arrays of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) on quartz wafers by using FeCl3/polymer as catalytic precursors and chemical vapor deposition (CVD) of methane. With the assistance of polymer, the catalysts may be well-patterned on the wafer surface by simple photolithography or polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) stamp microcontact printing (?CP).

Abstract: Communication to or from a nanodevice is provided with a nanostructure-based antenna, preferably formed from, but not limited to, a single wall nanotube (SWNT). Other nanostructure-based antennas include double walled nanotubes, semiconducting nanowires, metal nanowires and the like. The use of a nanostructure-based antenna eliminates the need to provide a physical communicative connection to the nanodevice, while at the same time allowing communication between the nanodevice and other nanodevices or outside systems, i.e., systems larger than nanoscale such as those formed from semiconductor fabrication processes such as CMOS, GaAs, bipolar processes and the like.

Abstract: A carbon nano-tube based variable frequency patch antennas which utilizes a dense network of semiconducting carbon nanotubes as the antenna patch is provided. In preferred embodiments, the resonant frequency of the antenna can be tuned electrically by adjusting appropriate sections of its back-gate, thus altering the effective size of the patch antenna and radiation beam direction can be formed and stirred. In one embodiment, a patch antenna comprises a dense network or thick layer of semiconducting carbon nanotubes grown or deposited on an oxide layer to form a carbon nanotube patch and a partitioned backgate is positioned below the oxide layer with a ground-plane formed from a thin layer of metal. In other embodiments, a patch antenna includes an array of carbon nanotube patches and the ground-plane doubles as the backgate.

Abstract: A multifinger carbon nanotube field-effect transistor (CNT FET) is provided in which a plurality of nonotube top gated FETs are combined in a finger geometry along the length of a single carbon nanotube, an aligned array of nanotubes, or a random array of nanotubes. Each of the individual FETs are arranged such that there is no geometrical overlap between the gate and drain finger electrodes over the single carbon nanotube so as to minimize the Miller capacitance (Cgd) between the gate and drain finger electrodes. A low-K dielectric may be used to separate the source and gate electrodes in the multifinger CNT FET so as t further minimize the Miller capacitance between the source and gate electrodes.

Abstract: The present invention provides nanotube interconnects capable of carrying current at high frequencies for use as high-speed interconnects in high frequency circuits. It is shown that the dynamical or AC conductance of single-walled nanotubes equal their DC conductance up to at least 10 GHZ, demonstrating that the current carrying capacity of nanotube interconnects can be extended into the high frequency (microwave) regime without degradation. Thus, nanotube interconnects can be used as high-speed interconnects in high frequency circuits, e.g., RF and microwave circuits, and high frequency nano-scale circuits. In a preferred embodiment, the nanotube interconnects comprise metallic single-walled nanotubes (SWNTs), although other types of nanotubes may also be used, e.g., multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNTs), ropes of all metallic nanotubes, and ropes comprising mixtures of semiconducting and metallic nanotubes. Applications for the nanotube interconnects include both digital and analog electronic circuitry.

Abstract: A method and device are provided for determining, without contact, the physical and electrical properties of nanotube materials. The device includes a scanning probe configured to generate a signal of certain frequency onto the nanotube material and measure a reflected signal from the nanotube material, and a processor coupled to the scanning probe and configured to determine the physical and electrical properties of the nanotube material from the measured reflected signal. The method includes positioning a scanning probe relative to the nanotube material, generating a signal of certain frequency onto the nanotube material, and measuring a reflected signal from the nanotube material.

Abstract: A continuous wave (CW) integrator is employed within a compressive receiver to improve the sensitivity of the compressive receiver to CW signals. The CW integrator circuit partitions the bandwidth of the compressive receiver into a series of contiguous bins and integrates any signals residing within these bins over many sweeps of the compressive receiver bandwidth. By sampling and integrating CW signals present in the compressive receiver bandwidth, the CW integrator circuit improves the sensitivity of the compressive receiver by a factor approximately equal to 10 log .sqroot.N, where N is the number of integrations performed.

Abstract: An ultra-linear chirp generator includes a voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) having a tuning characteristic which is naturally nonlinear, a linear ramp generator which generates a linearly ramping output signal having a linear slope characteristic with respect to time, a polynomial correction waveform generator which generates a polynomial correction signal, and a summer which is responsive to and sums the linearly ramping output signal and the polynomial correction signal. The summer generates a VCO tuning signal for tuning the VCO. The tuning signal corresponds to the linearly ramping output signal predistorted with a nonlinearity opposite to the natural nonlinearity of the VCO tuning characteristic. The linear chirp generator also includes a phase locked loop which is responsive to the output signal of the VCO and which has a reference frequency which is related to the repetition rate of the output signal of the VCO.

Abstract: An ultra-linear chirp generator includes a voltage controlled oscillator (VCO) having a tuning characteristic which is naturally nonlinear, a linear ramp generator which generates a linearly ramping output signal having a linear slope characteristic with respect to time, a polynomial correction waveform generator which generates a polynomial correction signal, and a summer which is responsive to and sums the linearly ramping output signal and the polynomial correction signal. The summer generates a VCO tuning signal for tuning the VCO. The tuning signal corresponds to the linearly ramping output signal predistorted with a nonlinearity opposite to the natural nonlinearity of the VCO tuning characteristic. The linear chirp generator also includes a phase locked loop which is responsive to the output signal of the VCO and which has a reference frequency which is related to the repetition rate of the output signal of the VCO.