We report the selective growth of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) on nickel oxide catalytic templates created by atomic force microscope nano-oxidation. Nickel oxide patterns are first produced on a nickel film by applying a negative bias to the tip. After removing unoxidized nickel, oxide patterns or nanodots with a smallest size of around 30 nm are successfully fabricated. Vertically aligned bunched or single CNTs with diameters of 30-80 nm are selectively grown on the oxide nanostructures by inductively coupled plasma chemical vapor deposition. It is also shown that the tube diameter can be effectively controlled by the dot size. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.