Sensors and Actuators A 136 (2007) 5161

Review

Nano electromechanical sensors based on carbon nanotubes

Christofer Hierold , Alain Jungen, Christoph Stampfer, Thomas Helbling
Micro and Nanosystems, ETH Zurich, CH-8092 Zurich, Switzerland
Received 7 November 2006; accepted 5 February 2007
Available online 16 February 2007

Abstract
Sensors are key components in an overwhelming wealth of systems for industrial and consumer applications. Further system miniaturization
will demand for continuous down-scaling of sensor functions in such systems most likely towards nanoscale. Then new sensor device concepts
will emerge to improve performance, e.g. sensitivity, or to utilize unique functional properties of nanoscale structures. This paper presents
concepts and demonstrators of nano electromechanical sensors based on carbon nanotubes (CNTs). First, different transducer concepts based
on the unique electrical, mechanical and electromechanical properties of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) are addressed and discussed.
Second, fabrication techniques and methods for the integration of SWNTs in micro or nanosystems are presented. Finally, demonstrators of
suspended SWNT-based cantilever structures and a membrane-based nanotube pressure sensor are introduced and evaluated. Electromechanical
measurements on these test devices prove SWNTs as exceptional piezoresistive electromechanical transducers with gauge factors far above the
values of state-of-the-art strain gauges.
2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Keywords: NEMS; MEMS; Transducers; Carbon nanotubes; Process integration; Nanotechnology

Contents
1.
2.
3.

4.

5.

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Electromechanical transducer concepts based on carbon nanotubes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Synthesis of SWNT-based NEMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
3.1. NEMS by local CNT growth and integration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
3.2. NEMS by CNT assembly and integration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Evaluation of SWNT electromechanical transducers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
4.1. Suspended carbon nanotube electromechanical transducers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
4.2. Membrane-based carbon nanotube electromechanical transducers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Acknowledgments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

1. Introduction
In general, further system miniaturization will certainly create demands for a continuous down-scaling of sensor functions

Corresponding author at: Micro and Nanosystems, Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering, ETH Zurich, Tannenstrasse 3, CH-8092 Zurich,
Switzerland. Tel.: +41 44 63 23143; fax: +41 44 63 21462.
E-mail address: hierold@micro.mavt.ethz.ch (C. Hierold).

0924-4247/$ see front matter 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.sna.2007.02.007

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in a variety of different application fields [1]. Further scaling of

transducers, in particular of sensor systems, is mandatory for all
applications where ultra-miniature size enables the exploration
of the nano cosmos. System biology for example, which is
currently taking off as research discipline to explore the basic
principles of living systems by quantitative modeling of inter
and intra cellular processes [2], will starve for nano tools and
sensors to provide data for model verification. Implantable
devices like future autonomous micro robots or multifunctional
endoscopes [3] for minimal invasive diagnostics [4], health

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monitoring, drug delivery and many other intra-corporal

tasks need ultra-miniature sensors to fulfill their missions
while minimizing invasiveness. Last but not least, system
miniaturization and device integration, based on reproducible
fabrication processes and large-scale production, are still the
top pre-requisites for low cost products. However, limitations in
down-scaling of conventional micro electromechanical systems
(MEMS) are foreseeable [6]. Therefore new materials with new
properties on the nanoscale will emerge to fulfill sensor tasks
in ultra-miniaturized sensor systems.
The field of nano electromechanical systems (NEMS) has
attracted great interest in the last years [710], mainly due to
the considerable potential for future high-sensitive low power
sensing devices. Significant progress has been recently made to
design, fabricate and test a host of novel NEMS devices, like resonating charge shuttles [11], single electron spin detectors [12],
nanoscaled switches [13], nanotube based pressure [14] and
mass sensors [15]. On the other hand, nano electromechanical
structures are starting to approach the quantum limit for detecting non-classical states of mechanical motion [9,16]. Thus, nano
electromechanical systems are not only in the focus of engineers
heading towards the ultimate limit of solid state devices, but
also physicists are increasingly interested in the investigation of
new fundamental aspects of nano quantum mechanical systems
[1719].
In this paper, first proposals to create nano electromechanical
sensors based on carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are discussed.
2. Electromechanical transducer concepts based on
carbon nanotubes
Carbon nanotubes, discovered in 1991 [20], are one of the
most intensely studied nanostructures to date [2123] and are
very promising for the further miniaturization of sensors due to
their unique electrical, mechanical and electromechanical properties. Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) are hollow
cylinders of graphene, composed of a single layer of carbon
atoms. The length of the tubes can be several micrometers and
the diameters are on the order of 1 nm, owing to very high
aspect ratios. Perfect SWNTs without distortions show ballistic conductance and may carry very high current densities
(up to 109 A/cm2 [24]). Depending on the structural symmetry, which is described by the terms armchair, zig-zag or chiral
type tubes, they can exhibit either metallic or semiconducting
behavior. Moreover, they are highly elastic with Youngs modulus in the range of 1 TPa [25]. Their extraordinary mechanical,
electrical and electromechanical properties will make them to
promising candidates for very sensitive elements in nanosystems. Research on CNTs for transducers is taking off and first
CNT-based nano mechanical systems have been recently published [2628]. Some of the many application ideas for utilizing
CNTs as structural mechanical elements include data storage
[29], relays [13], oscillators [15,30], switches [31], and sensors
[14,3235].
Before we exclusively focus on the electromechanical properties of SWNTs for electromechanical transducer concepts we
shortly discuss a matrix of possible carbon nanotube based elec-

trical, mechanical and optical transducers and their applications

for sensing and actuation purposes. This matrix is illustrated
in Fig. 1. Since opto-mechanical sensor and actuator systems
are not yet investigated systematically, we consequently did
not fill the corresponding matrix elements. The first column
of the matrix labels the different input signals (lines) such as
electrical, mechanical or optical signal, whereas the upper line
labels the different output signals. The insert at the lower right
corner schematically illustrates some of the possible physical
processes. The first entries in this table (upper left corner) are
from the group of nano electronic devices; the most prominent
example here is the nanotube based field effect transistor. The
second entry (upper center) covers electromechanical actuation
devices, e.g. based on the so-called piezo effect, where an electrical signal is converted to mechanical deformation or actuation.
Examples are: nano relays, nano tweezers, carbon nanotube
based rotors or mechanical memory cells, just to name a few
of them. Very recently optoelectronic transducers for highly
localized infrared emission and absorption have attracted great
interest with considerable potential for future applications in
optoelectronics [54]. Finally, electromechanical transducers for
sensing purposes are listed (center left), of which a variety of different devices and concepts based on piezoresistive strain gauges
or field emission have been demonstrated.
For sensing mechanical units, the electromechanical properties of SWNTs are of most interest. Recent experiments have
proven their potential use as piezoresistors in a variety of applications. In a very recent experiment Grow et al. [35] studied the
electromechanical response of semiconducting and small-gap
semiconducting SWNTs adhered to a silicon nitride surface.
They reported gauge factors from 376 up to 856 for semiconducting and small-gap semiconducting SWNTs, respectively. In
an earlier publication Cao et al. [47] reported effective piezoresistive gauge factors of between 600 and 1000. In the experiment
of Tombler et al. [45], an atomic force microscope (AFM) tip
was used to deform a SWNT (global strain of 3%). A decrease
in conductance of more than two orders of magnitude was
observed. The high elasticity of the covalent carboncarbon
bonds is proposed to allow the SWNT to return, even from
a strong deformation to its original state, i.e. symmetric sp2
bonding configuration. This fact combined with the remarkable electrical response to a mechanical load makes SWNTs
promising candidates for novel device concepts.
3. Synthesis of SWNT-based NEMS
Several different approaches to produce carbon nanotubes
exist. Well known are arc-discharge, laser ablation and chemical vapor deposition (CVD). Arc-discharge and laser ablation
methods have been pursued in the past 15 years. Both methods
involve the condensation of carbon atoms generated from
evaporation of solid carbon sources. The temperatures involved
in these methods are close to the melting temperature of
graphite, 30004000 C [22]. High quality single-wall carbon
nanotubes (SWNTs) can be grown from these two methods;
however, they tend to create a deposit of entangled nanotubes
or nanowires which leaves the challenge of post-growth

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53

Fig. 1. Matrix of possible carbon nanotube based electrical, mechanical and optical transducers and their applications for sensing and actuation purposes. For more
information please refer to the text (See references [3639,4144,46,48,49,5153]).

purification, manipulation and assembly. They are known as

bulk growth techniques [55].
In contrast, CVD [56] allows for controlled surface-bound
SWNT growth enabling device integration. The CVD growth
process involves heating a catalyst material [57] to high temperatures in a tube furnace and flowing a hydrocarbon gas feedstock
through the tube reactor for a period of time. SWNTs grown
over the catalyst are collected after cooling of the system down
to room temperature. The key parameters in CVD growth are the
hydrocarbon gas, catalyst material, catalyst size and growth temperature. For the CNT synthesis the following process steps are
enumerated: (1) adsorption of the gas precursor molecule on the
catalyst surface; (2) dissociation of the precursor molecule on the
catalyst surface; (3) diffusion of the growth species in or on the
catalyst particle (surface or bulk diffusion); (4) nucleation and
incorporation of carbon into the growing structure. Theoretical
studies on the nucleation exist [58,59], but the catalyst interaction with the carbon precursors is still not fully understood.
Therefore, experimental optimizations can be undertaken to tune
the control of growth density and the CNT properties [60]. As far
as the growth mechanism is concerned, it is commonly accepted
that carbon dissolves into the catalyst and CNTs grow by precipitation of excess carbon on the metal surface above or behind
(base or tip growth) the catalyst particle [61]. This idea originates from the vaporliquidsolid (VLS) mechanism. Here, the
catalyst forms from a liquid droplet and preferentially adsorbs
the growth species from the surrounding vapor and solids grow
from a supersaturated eutectic liquid.
The localized and directed growth of nanotubes can be
achieved by pre-patterning a suitable catalyst and by applying
an electrical field [62,63], or plasma during growth. The current

benchmark method for high-resolution patterning is electron

beam (e-beam) lithography in combination with a lift-off
process. Competing state-of-the art methods are the maskless
focused ion beam (FIB) writing of Pt film nucleating preferentially nanofibers [64], or pulsed electrochemical deposition to
form Ni and Fe catalyst islands of controlled size and density
[65]. Nano contact printing can be employed to deposit purified
Co colloids in regular patterns for low cost patterning over large
areas [66].
3.1. NEMS by local CNT growth and integration
By integrating nanotube growth into batch fabricated
microsystems, nano electromechanical systems (NEMS) are
achieved to create sensors and to develop methods and devices
for direct and reliable measurements of nanotube transducer
properties. We describe a series of processing steps to achieve
successful integration of SWNTs directly into a MEMS
chip.
The process flow is shown schematically in Fig. 2. Electron
beam (e-beam) lithography resist (PMMA) of 400 nm thickness
is spin coated on top of the 2 mm 2 mm chip (Fig. 2a). The
written structures are openings, typically 2 m in feature size,
defining place-holders for the catalyst material and resulting in a
locally defined spot for catalysts for spatial control of nanotube
growth (Fig. 2b). After development, a droplet of a catalytic solution based on iron nitride dissolved in methanol [67] is placed
onto the chip and evaporated using a hot plate (40 C). Alternatively a metal bi-layer can be sputtered or evaporated on top of
the chip, replacing the catalytic solution. Typically a 10 nm Al
layer is evaporated followed by a thin 1 nm sputtered Ni layer.

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Fig. 2. Schematic diagram of the process flow. (a) PMMA spin coating (2
6000 rpm during 45 s resulting in 400 nm resist thickness, post-bake at 180 C
during 20 min each); (b) electron beam lithography followed by resist development MIBK:IPA 1:3 for 3 min); (c) catalyst deposition (droplet onto chip placed
at hot plate 40 C or Al/Ni bi-layer evaporation/sputtering) and lift-off in acetone
during 4 min under weak sonication; (d) CNT growth (using ATV PEO 603 at
900 C during 10 min CH4 at 200 mbar); (e) metallization; (f) HF release [68A].

The Al layer in this case serves as a diffusion barrier for the

catalyst which consists of Ni nano particles.
In order to grow tubes that span across a 2 m trench, the catalyst coating should come with a high surface area presenting
non-aggregated nano particle sized sites for the assembly of carbon molecules into nanotubes. The lift-off process is completed
by stripping the PMMA in acetone under ultrasonic agitation
(Fig. 2c).
The chip is now placed into a 4-in. quartz tube LPCVD reactor
(Fig. 2d). The furnace is heated under argon to 850 C. Methane
fed at 1000 sccm mixed with hydrogen and kept at 200 mbar
is provided as a carbon feedstock for 10 min. The reactor is
evacuated and cooled to at least 300 C before venting to atmosphere using nitrogen. A second e-beam lithography and lift-off
step are used immediately after to deposit a Cr/Au layer for
electrical connectivity (Fig. 2e). Since the growth occurs on the
surface of the uppermost poly-Si layer most of the SWNTs are
freestanding prior to the HF release of the MEMS. The second
spin coating has been proven not to destroy the nanotubes. After
the standard HF release the MEMS chip is ready for actuation
(Fig. 2f).
A schematic of a NEMS featured by integrated SWNTs is
shown in Fig. 3a, and a corresponding scanning electron micrograph is depicted in Fig. 3b. The catalyst used here was a
sputtered Al/Ni bi-layer 10 and 1 nm thick, respectively [68,69].
The SWNT is grown to span the gap between two poly-Si tips.
Please notice that the process steps according to Fig. 2e and 2f
are not applied on the device of Fig. 3b. Structural insights of
the SWNT were obtained by Raman scattering of 532 nm green
light. The spectrum shown in Fig. 3c indicates a SWNT with a
diameter of 1.46 nm determined by the Raman frequency shift

Fig. 3. (a) Schematic representation of a NEMS with an integrated SWNT by

growth; (b) scanning electron micrograph of a freestanding SWNT connecting
two poly-Si tips; (c) Raman spectrum of such a SWNT. The spectrum shows
a split G-band and a radial breathing mode (RBM) which are SWNT specific
features [68A].

of the radial breathing mode. The frequency of this mode is

inversely proportional to the tube diameter [7072]. The weak
impurity feature called the D-peak, or defect-peak indicates a
low defect SWNT [73].
One step further towards localized and CMOS compatible growth of CNTs for NEMS integration is achieved by
the synthesis of carbon nanotubes utilizing a super-localized
chemical vapor deposition method. The modified CVD method
relies on the usage of local heat sources defined in micro scale
resistive heaters through a standard polysilicon based surface
micromachining process instead of a global reaction furnace
heating.
This method provides a remedy to amorphous carbon contamination of the exposed chip and most importantly a significant

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55

Fig. 4. (a) Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) image of a typical (released) poly silicon microheater; (b) schematic of experimental setup for the fabrication
process; (c) temperature distribution measured by confocal Raman scattering of the structure shown in Fig. 4a; (d) microheater tip containing carbon nanotubes [74],
please notice that this heater structure is different from the structure shown in Figs. 4a and 4c.

step towards the process integration of nanotubes into functional devices. Since the synthesis is carried out globally at room
temperature the suggested process is compatible with standard
CMOS technology.
Microheaters were designed from a triple polysilicon
layer surface micromachining process [7476]. They can be
defined in any of the releasable polysilicon layers. The chip is
acetone stripped and HF released before catalyst deposition.
Fig. 4a shows an image of an uncoated released microheater.
The sample is then coated with a catalytic solution containing
iron nitride, molybdenum and alumina nanoparticles dissolved
in methanol [40]. The evaporation of the solvent is enhanced
in air using a hot plate (40 C). After evaporation the chip is
die bonded onto a support chip containing large contact pads
using non-permanent hot-wax and wire bonds. The system is
then transferred into a vacuum chamber featuring electrical in
situ connection. Please refer to Fig. 4b.
The vacuum chamber is first subjected to argon purge and
evacuation cycles. Subsequently methane is fed at 150 sccm
and the pressure is kept at 75 mbar. Heat is produced through
resistive heating (Joule heating) by applying electrical power at
the polysilicon beams. The temperature of the micro heater tips
has been measured for heater structures by Raman spectroscopy

in dependence of the applied voltage [77]. Temperatures up to

1200 K and temperature gradients of 70 K/m were determined
in Refs. [78,79]. A voltage controlled power supply is used
and simultaneous resistance monitoring is done. The reaction is
carried out at the vicinity of the maximum temperature during
15 min using increasing voltage steps.
Fig. 4c shows carbon nanotubes locally grown directly on
the microheater spot. Growth of small diameter nanotubes
occurred only at the vicinity of the maximum temperature, i.e.
the center of the heater. Bundles of single-walled or thick multiwalled CNTs were observed in colder regions away from the
maximum heat spot. Thus, the thermal gradient in the heater
structure gives rise to different thermal activities leading to
various types of nanotubes in terms of thickness, length and
density.
3.2. NEMS by CNT assembly and integration
In order to evaluate new device concepts based on CNTs,
SWNTs have been integrated into MEMS-like structures
[8183] by assembly. A typical process flow for the integration
of SWNTs by assembly into NEMS is shown in Fig. 5, which
has been applied for the fabrication of a CNT-based pressures
sensor (Figs. 8 and 9) [14,50].

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Fig. 5. Process flow for the fabrication of SWNT-based pressure sensors. (a)
100 nm alumina is grown by ALD on a 300 m thick Si substrate. The membrane
cavity on the backside is aligned to global front side alignment markers and
etched by the BOSCH process; (b) local markers are patterned by e-beam; (c)
SWNTs are randomly adsorbed on the alumina surface. The local markers are
used to find the relative position of the adsorbed SWNTs by AFM imaging; (d)
contact electrodes are patterned by e-beam; (e) formed by PVD of 1 nm Ti and
30 nm Au and lift-off; (f) the membrane is released in an isotropic dry etching
step [68A].

First a 100 nm thick alumina (Al2 O3 ) film is grown by atomic

layer deposition (ALD) technique on a 300 m thick silicon substrate and global alignment markers made of 2 nm Cr and 30 nm
Au are structured by standard UV photolithography and lift-off.
Alumina ALD is performed by the group of George, UC at Boulder [84]. Then the membrane openings on the backside of the
sample are aligned to the global markers on the front side by
infrared alignment. The BOSCH dry etching process is used to
form the cavities by anisotropic etching until a few microns of
Si remain (Fig. 5a). This remaining part mechanically supports

the Al2 O3 thin film during the next processing steps. The next
steps are the adsorption and contacting of the SWNT sensing
elements. This is done on an area in the centre of the membrane
(Fig. 5a red area). By electron beam (e-beam) lithography local
alignment markers are patterned and created by physical vapor
deposition (PVD) of 1 nm Ti and 30 nm Au followed by a lift-off
(Fig. 5b). Before the deposition of nanotubes, the alumina surface is functionalized with DAS. Highly purified SWNTs from
an arc-discharge fabrication process are dispersed from sodiumdodecylsulphate (SDS) solution and adsorbed randomly on the
Al2 O3 surface on the sample (Fig. 5c). Deposited local reference
alignment markers serve to map the location of the randomly
distributed nanotubes. This is done using AFM imaging. The
contact electrodes of the SWNTs are patterned by a second ebeam lithography step (Fig. 5d) followed by PVD of 1 nm Ti
and 30 nm Au and lift-off (Fig. 5e). For the pressure sensor Ti is
used instead of Cr to achieve better contacts between the electrodes and the SWNT. For a further improvement of the contacts
an annealing step at 400 C for 10 min under argon atmosphere
is carried out. The final process step is the release of the ALD
alumina membrane from the remained few microns of bulk Si
(Fig. 5f). For this, an isotropic release in reactive ion etching
(RIE) equipment is performed. Before the release takes place,
the front side is covered with photoresist to prevent the SWNT
from incurring damage due to the plasma. A final cleaning step
removes the protective photoresist layer. The schematic of the
final device is shown in Fig. 8a. In Fig. 8b, a released Al2 O3 circular membrane with gold lines and contacted SWNTs is shown.
This basic process flow is also applied for the fabrication of
the suspended cantilevers in Figs. 6 and 7 with two variations:
The membrane pre-etch and final release (bulk micromachning
of the membrane) have been substituted by a surface micromachining process module to release the Cr/Au cantilevers from
the surface by HF (diluted) wet etching and a subsequently
drying by CO2 critical point drying. We use discrete, highly
purified and chemically stable CNTs (fabricated by an arcdischarge process) as active elements to reliably withstand HF
release.
4. Evaluation of SWNT electromechanical transducers
4.1. Suspended carbon nanotube electromechanical
transducers
Fig. 6a shows an illustration of a concept for a nanoscaled
force sensor based on individual SWNTs. The basic functionality of this device is as following: an individual SWNT is
connected to and fixed by electrodes and it is suspended from
the substrate. If now an external out-of-plane force acts on the
freestanding cantilever, it will deflect, which finally leads to
a mechanical deformation (mainly stretching of the nanotube
branches) of the clamped SWNT.
The cantilever (i.e. MEMS like beams, see Fig. 6a and b) provides a precise mechanical interface to the tube, applying local
deformation at the edges and axial strain in the branches of the
nanotubes. To investigate the proposed transducer concept we
studied cantilever and bridge based structures which have been

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57

actuated by an atomic force microscope. The mechanical characterization of the structures revealed the following conclusions:
The deflection of the 3050 nm Au structures is well described
by the elastic beam theory (EulerBernoulli theory of beams) in
the small deflection regime. The SWNT in the given set up contributes significantly to the stiffness of the system (spring constant) and is well described by modeling the tube mechanics like
a string. Electromechanical measurements on a cantilever-based
structure are shown in Fig. 7b. An AFM-tip is used to deflect the
cantilever by z at the point where the nanotube is mechanically
connected to the beam. The electrical measurement of the resistance of the SWNTs under mechanical load showed a significant
and reversible increase of the tubes resistance in dependence of
the deflection of the nanotube. We plot the resistance R in dependence of the deflection of the single-walled carbon nanotube. At
zero-deflection the resistances is in the range of 300 k. It then
increases to 5.5 M at a nanotube deflection of 35 nm. The insert
of Fig. 7b shows the reproducibility of these measurements. Thus
this concept of nano electromechanical systems has been proven.
The strong electromechanical response of the investigated
nanotube can be understood in terms of a strain dependent
bandgap opening, which consequently leads within the thermal activated transport model to an exponential increase of the
resistance R as a function of applied strain.

Fig. 7. (a) Finalized device of a cantilever-based test structure; (b) electromechanical measurements on a cantilever-based structure. The resistance R is
plotted on a log scale as a function of the nanotube deflection z. () Indicate the measurement points related to pushing down and () to the release of
the force. Note that (a) and (b) origin from different devices [68A].

4.2. Membrane-based carbon nanotube electromechanical

transducers

Fig. 6. (a) Schematic concept illustration of a single-walled carbon nanotube

based nanoscaled sensor system; (b) SEM image of a fabricated functional
building block before the final HF release (cantilever) [68].

Complementary to the suspended CNT electromechanical transducers, which are discussed in previous section, a
membrane-based CNT transducer has been demonstrated [14].
As an advantage of the membrane-based test stands the local
deformation of the tube at the edges of the cantilevers or bridges
is avoided and axial stress is applied to the tube by straining
the membrane. This device is a SWNT-based pressure sensor,
utilizing the tube as electromechanical piezoresistive transducer
(Figs. 8 and 9).
Based on the process flow described in brief above SWNT
pressure sensors were fabricated with membrane diameters
between 100 and 250 m (Fig. 8a). Fig. 8b provides a total
overview of the bulk micromachined Al2 O3 membrane with
multiple electrode configurations to contact up to four SWNTs
independently. The SWNTs are adhered to the membrane surface by van der Waals forces and are electrically connected
to and clamped by the Ti/Au electrodes. Differential pressure

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C. Hierold et al. / Sensors and Actuators A 136 (2007) 5161

Fig. 9. The investigated individual single-walled carbon nanotube is contacted

by two 30 nm thick gold electrodes (1 nm Ti for adhesion), which are separated
by approx. 600 nm. Additionally, a side gate has been patterned to tune the
investigated nanotube. Please, note that this measurement origins from a different
device as shown in Fig. 8, [14].

increase in resistance R as a function of the applied differential

pressure p revealed a gauge factor of 210 [14]. Thus, the first
pressure sensor transfer function of a metallic SWNT pressure
sensor has been demonstrated.
5. Conclusions

Fig. 8. (a) Illustration of the pressure sensor concept based on alumina membranes and single-walled carbon nanotubes as functional elements; (b) bulk
micromachined 100 nm thick alumina membrane diameter 200 m) with multiple electrode configurations (30 nm Ti/Au electrodes) and SEM image of a
close-up view after all processing [1,68A].

(up to 1.4 105 Pa) is applied to strain the membrane and the
adhered SWNTs. For a given membrane with 108 m diameter
a pressure difference of 105 Pa results in straining the SWNT
to 0.05%.
The resistance of the metallic SWNT is determined by measuring the IU transfer characteristics of the tube for each applied
differential pressure (Fig. 9) by applying voltages between 50
and 0 mV and recording the respective current for 100 measurement points. The error bars shown in Fig. 9 are determined by the
variance of these measurement points. The pressure dependent

The feasibility of CNT-based nano electromechanical systems (NEMS) is confirmed by the research results of several
groups. The review and results presented in this paper confirm
the potential and excellent performance of SWNTs for sensors
by the integration of tubes in well-defined MEMS structures
to reproducibly quantify electromechanical device properties,
e.g. sensitivity. Further investigations are necessary to evaluate
noise properties and to investigate the influence of the fabrication process on these properties. The direct integration of CNTs
into devices will result in the next generation of nanotransducers
for mechanical loads. To develop these NEMS it is mandatory
to continue research on the control and the reproducibility of
the assembly, or even better the growth of CNTs. Self-assembly
or self-assembled growth of nanostructures instead of structuring by photolithographic means will be the preferred process
technology approach for nano device integration. Continuous
basic research is also needed to integrate CNTs into MEMS on
wafer level and to provide fast and efficient methods for CNT
pre-evaluation and CNT growth process control.
Acknowledgments
The authors thank the operational teams of ETH Zurichs
cleanroom facilites (FIRST and CLA labs) and EMEZ for support. We thank Prof. Victor Bright and Prof. Steven George,
both University of Colorado at Boulder, for many helpful discussions and for supporting the project with ALD alumina
substrates. Support of the nanotransducers research program
by ETH Zurich (TH 18/03-1) and by Swiss National Science
Foundation (20021-108059/1) is gratefully acknowledged.

C. Hierold et al. / Sensors and Actuators A 136 (2007) 5161

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Biographies
Christofer Hierold has been a Professor of Micro and Nanosystems at ETH
Zurich since April 2002. Previously, he was with Siemens AG, Corporate
Research, and Infineon Technologies AG in Germany, working manly on
CMOS compatible microsystems. At ETH Zurich he started his research on
the evaluation of new materials for MEMS, on advanced microsystems, and
on nanotransducers. Christofer Hierold is a member of the International Steering Committees of major conferences in the field (MEMS, TRANSDUCERS,
EUROSENSORS) and he is a member of the editorial boards of IEEE/ASME
Journal of Microelectromechanical Systems and of IoP Journal of Micromechanics and Microengineering, and he is joint editor of the book series Advanced
Micro and Nanosystems (WileyVCH).
Alain Jungen graduated from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL)
Lausanne, Switzerland where he received the MSc degree in microtechnology
with emphasis on integrated products. Mr. Jungen had carried out his thesis work
at a nanotechnology company called Zyvex based in the greater Dallas area,
Texas, USA. He investigated 2D micro scanning mirrors as well as creep and
friction issues in MEMS. Mr. Jungen came aboard the Micro and Nanosystems
group at ETH Zurich to research the process integration of carbon nanotube
growth into microsystems.

C. Hierold et al. / Sensors and Actuators A 136 (2007) 5161

Christoph Stampfer has studied technical physics and electrical engineering at
the TU Vienna, Austria where he received the Dipl-Ing degree and completed his
BSc in Applied Physics with Computing at the Napier University (Edinburgh,
GB). Mr. Stampfer is currently a PhD student at the chair of Micro and Nanosystems at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH), Switzerland.
His current research interests include applications of carbon nanotube based
NEMS, electromechanical properties of single-walled carbon nanotubes and
ballistic electron transport in open quantum billiards.

61

Thomas Helbling received the MSc degree in electrical engineering and information technology from the ETH Zurich, Switzerland with main focus on
integrated electronic circuits and microsystems technology. Mr. Helbling joined
the group of Micro and Nanosystems at the ETH Zurich, Switzerland during his
Master thesis, where he investigated the use of carbon nanotubes as piezoresistive sensing elements in pressure sensors. Currently he is a PhD student with
the same group where he focuses the electromechanical properties of carbon
nanotubes and their possible use for future nanoscaled sensors.