Molecular dynamics simulation is performed on the buckling behavior of single and multi-walled carbon nanotubes under axial compression. Brenner’s ‘second generation’ empirical potential is used to describe the many-body short range interatomic interactions for singlewalled carbon nanotubes, while the Lennard Jones 12-6 model for van der Waals potential is added for multi-walled carbon nanotube...

We present near-field Raman spectroscopy and imaging of single isolated single-walled carbon nanotubes with a spatial resolution of approximately 25 nm. The near-field origin of the image contrast is confirmed by the measured dependence of the Raman scattering signal on tip-sample distance and the unique polarization properties. The method is used to study local variations in the Raman spectrum...

Individual multi-walled carbon nanotubes were investigated for their usefulness as nanoscale electrochemical electrodes. The nanotubes were mounted on metal-coated atomic force microscopy tips, and the assembly was insulated with Parylene polymer. Approximately 200nm of the nanotube tip was exposed by use of a laser so the entire probe could be immersed in an electrolytic solution with only the...

The structure of carbon nanotubes is recognized to be suitable for medical applications such as encapsulating drugs or genes with the aim of targeted deliveries. In this regard, knowing about the suction force exerted on a nonoscale object which is supposed to be sucked into a carbon nanotube, and whether the object is accepted by the carbon nanotube are important issues to be studied. In this ...

We present the photovoltaic properties of heterojunctions made from single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) fibers and n-type silicon wafers. The use of the opaque SWNT fiber allows photo-generated holes to transport along the axis direction of the fiber. The heterojunction solar cells show conversion efficiencies of up to 3.1% (actual) and 10.6% (nominal) at AM1.5 condition. In addition, the use ...

Although the thermal properties of millimeter-sized carbon nanotube mats and packed carbon nanofibers have been readily measured, measurements for a single nanotube are extremely difficult. Here, we report a novel method that can reliably measure the thermal conductivity of a single carbon nanotube using a suspended sample-attached T-type nanosensor. Our experimental results show that the therm...

We use electrostatic force microscopy and scanned gate microscopy to probe the conducting properties of carbon nanotubes at room temperature. Multiwalled carbon nanotubes are shown to be diffusive conductors, while metallic single-walled carbon nanotubes are ballistic conductors over micron lengths. Semiconducting single-walled carbon nanotubes are shown to have a series of large barriers to co...

The fabrication of single-walled carbon nanotubes is still somewhat of an art form, and processes that either create the nanotubes at a much faster rate or of much greater length or purity is still needed. Zhu et al. (p. 884) use an improved floating catalyst method to create centimeterlong single-walled nanotube ropes that are significantly longer than those obtained from either chemical vapor...

We show that single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) bundles emit visible fluorescence in the presence of noble metal nanoparticles and nanorods in the solid state. Conductivity measurements with metallic nanotubes, isolated from pristine SWNTs, show that they become semiconducting in the presence of the metal nanoparticles. Nanoparticle binding increases the defects in the nanotube structures whi...

We report the capacitive spring softening effect observed in single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) nanoelectromechanical (NEM) resonators. The nanotube resonators adopt a dual-gate configuration with both bottom-gate and end-gate capable of tuning the resonance frequency through capacitive coupling. Interestingly, downward resonance frequency shifting is observed with increasing end-gate voltage...