Metal-carbon composites and methods for their production
A method for producing a carbon nanotube-metal composite in which carbon nanotubes are layered on a metal substrate, the method comprising: (i) depositing a liquid, in which carbon nanotubes are suspended, onto said metal substrate; (ii) during or after step (i), subjecting said liquid to a shearing force sufficient to spatially confine the liquid to induce at least partial alignment of said carbon nanotubes on said metal substrate; and (iii) removing said liquid to produce said carbon nanotube-metal composite; wherein, after step (iii), the lengthwise dimensions of said carbon nanotubes are adhered to and oriented parallel with said metal surface, and said carbon nanotubes are at least partially aligned with each other. In some embodiments, the liquid is deposited in the form of droplets, and the droplets are subjected to a shearing force to cause them to elongate, which induces at least partial alignment of the carbon nanotubes.