Nucleation of catalyst clusters during the growth of carbon nanotubes

The formation of cluster in the course of pyrolysis of ferrocene is studied experimentally and theoretically, and the parameters of the clusters are determined. The thermodynamics of homogeneous formation of catalyst clusters is developed. It is shown that the surface tension and sizes of the clusters substantially depend on the temperature and the properties of the substrate. Surface tension coefficients, as well as the characteristic sizes of clusters, are calculated. The resultant dependences and parameters make it possible to reconstruct the size distribution function for the clusters growing on a certain substrate by setting the temperature in the working zone. This permits the prediction of the cluster size depending on the synthesis conditions.