Impact of the atomic layer deposition precursors diffusion on solid-state carbon nanotube based supercapacitors performances

A study on the impact of atomic layer deposition (ALD) precursors diffusion on the performance of solid-state miniaturized nanostructure capacitor array is presented. Three-dimensional nanostructured capacitor array based on double conformal coating of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) bundles is realized using ALD to deposit Al₂O₃ as dielectric layer and TiN as high aspect-ratio conformal counter-electrode on 2 μm long MWCNT bundles. The devices have a small footprint (from 100 μm² to 2500 μm²) and are realized using an IC wafer-scale manufacturing process with high reproducibility (≤0.3E-12F deviation). To evaluate the enhancement of the electrode surface, the measured capacitance values are compared to a lumped circuital model. The observed discrepancies are explained with a partial coating of the CNT, that determine a limited use of the available electrode surface area. To analyze the CNT coating effectiveness, the ALD precursors diffusions inside the CNT bundle is studied using a Knudsen diffusion mechanism. (paper)