US Patent 7256394 - CNT ion source for mass spectroscopy

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7256394.html

This patent from Agilient Technologies teaches the use of uniformly distributed carbon nanotubes in an improved ion source for mass spectroscopy.

9. An ion source for use in ionizing a sample, comprising: (a) a laser; and (b) a surface for holding the sample, the surface comprising a uniformly distributed carbon nanotube material.

Agilient also has a related patent using nanowires (explicitly excluding CNTs)
http://tinytechip.blogspot.com/search?q=7078683