Fabrication and characterization of branched carbon nanostructures

• Sharali Malik,
• Yoshihiro Nemoto,
• Hongxuan Guo,
• Katsuhiko Ariga and
• Jonathan P. Hill

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 1260–1266, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.116

• of branched-MWCNTs, which opens the door to a multitude of possible applications. Keywords: branched multiwalled carbon nanotubes; carbon nanostructures; carbon nanotubes; graphene nanoribbons; multiwalled carbon nanotubes; Introduction Lighter, stronger materials such as nanocarbon composites

Facile synthesis of water-soluble carbon nano-onions under alkaline conditions

• Gaber Hashem Gaber Ahmed,
• Rosana Badía Laíño,
• Josefa Angela García Calzón and
• Marta Elena Díaz García

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 758–766, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.67

• absence and in presence of 30% (w/v) NaOH. We discovered that the use of NaOH as catalyst favored the formation of C-onions when tomatoes were used as C-source and that intermediate carbon nanostructures were formed when carrots or tree leaves were used. On the basis of the morphologies and spectral

Synthesis and applications of carbon nanomaterials for energy generation and storage

• Marco Notarianni,
• Jinzhang Liu,
• Kristy Vernon and
• Nunzio Motta

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2016, 7, 149–196, doi:10.3762/bjnano.7.17

• cell devices and electrochemical capacitors, also called supercapacitors, based on carbon nanostructures could allow for the fabrication of devices in the near future that could be more efficient and cheaper to produce than conventional silicon solar cells and chemical batteries [16][17]. The potential

Plasma fluorination of vertically aligned carbon nanotubes: functionalization and thermal stability

• Claudia Struzzi,
• Mattia Scardamaglia,
• Axel Hemberg,
• Luca Petaccia,
• Jean-François Colomer,
• Rony Snyders and
• Carla Bittencourt

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 2263–2271, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.232

• km 163.5, 34149 Trieste, Italy, Research Group on Carbon Nanostructures (CARBONNAGe), University of Namur, 5000 Namur, Belgium 10.3762/bjnano.6.232 Abstract Grafting of fluorine species on carbon nanostructures has attracted interest due to the effective modification of physical and chemical

• treatment were evaluated by combining different spectroscopic techniques. Keywords: carbon nanotubes; spectroscopy; synchrotron radiation; thermal stability; Introduction The covalent functionalization of carbon nanostructures has been largely exploited, and different techniques have been employed for

• achieving fine control of their electronic properties. Carbon nanostructures have been decorated with a large variety of atoms and molecules, using wet chemistry, hydrothermal reactions and plasma process [1][2][3][4][5][6]. Among the most studied, fluorine-based grafting species represent both a valid

A single-source precursor route to anisotropic halogen-doped zinc oxide particles as a promising candidate for new transparent conducting oxide materials

• Daniela Lehr,
• Markus R. Wagner,
• Johanna Flock,
• Julian S. Reparaz,
• Clivia M. Sotomayor Torres,
• Alexander Klaiber,
• Thomas Dekorsy and
• Sebastian Polarz

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 2161–2172, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.222

• indispensable constituents in important technological devices such as flat panel displays, touch screens, solar cells and photocatalytic systems [1][2][3][4]. Among the different materials used for this purpose [5] such as carbon nanostructures [6][7][8], silver nanowires [9][10] or conducting polymers [11

Possibilities and limitations of advanced transmission electron microscopy for carbon-based nanomaterials

• Xiaoxing Ke,
• Carla Bittencourt and
• Gustaaf Van Tendeloo

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1541–1557, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.158

• chemistry and bonding. In situ TEM of carbon-based nanomaterials is discussed and illustrated through recent reports with particular emphasis on the underlying physics of interactions between electrons and carbon atoms. Keywords: TEM; aberration-corrected; carbon; nanostructures; low-kV imaging; Review 1

• devices, catalysis supports, battery electrodes, and many more. The research of carbon nanohybrid materials, including both the fundamental study of carbon nanostructures and the understanding of interface formation between nano-carbon and the host matrix, is essential to the understanding of their

• at the contact is believed to contribute to the already present Schottky barrier in metal–CNT contacts, providing an alternative perspective in studying metal–CNTs contacts. Undoubtedly, advances in TEM have offered unrivaled opportunities in studying carbon nanostructures in both 2D and 3D in a

From lithium to sodium: cell chemistry of room temperature sodium–air and sodium–sulfur batteries

• Philipp Adelhelm,
• Pascal Hartmann,
• Conrad L. Bender,
• Martin Busche,
• Christine Eufinger and
• Juergen Janek

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1016–1055, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.105

Electron-stimulated purification of platinum nanostructures grown via focused electron beam induced deposition

• Brett B. Lewis,
• Michael G. Stanford,
• Jason D. Fowlkes,
• Kevin Lester,
• Harald Plank and
• Philip D. Rack

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 907–918, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.94

• , Oak Ridge, TN 37381, USA Institute for Electron Microscopy and Nanoanalysis, Graz University of Technology, Steyrergasse 17, 8010 Graz, Austria 10.3762/bjnano.6.94 Abstract Platinum–carbon nanostructures deposited via electron beam induced deposition from MeCpPt(IV)Me3 are purified during a post

• catalytic Pt–O reaction [18]. Finally, Mackus et al. have demonstrated that EBID deposited seed layers can be used as catalyst sites for selective area atomic layer deposition growth of Pt layers [19]. To this end, we have recently studied the post-deposition purification of platinum–carbon nanostructures

• deposited from MeCpPt(IV)Me3 via an electron stimulated reaction with oxygen gas [16] and water vapor [20]. Additionally we have investigated the purification of ruthenium–carbon nanostructures deposited from the bis(ethylcyclopentyldienyl) ruthenium(II) precursor via electron stimulated reaction with O2

Applications of three-dimensional carbon nanotube networks

• Manuela Scarselli,
• Paola Castrucci,
• Francesco De Nicola,
• Ilaria Cacciotti,
• Francesca Nanni,
• Emanuela Gatto,
• Mariano Venanzi and
• Maurizio De Crescenzi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 792–798, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.82

• networks consisting of randomly interconnected nanostructures. The bulk carbon nanostructures display a structural flexibility rarely observed in other high-porosity materials, e.g., bulk carbon aerogels [12] or aligned CNT arrays [3]. The pristine CNT-sponges are super-hydrophobic (i.e., a water contact

Low-cost formation of bulk and localized polymer-derived carbon nanodomains from polydimethylsiloxane

• Juan Carlos Castro Alcántara,
• Mariana Cerda Zorrilla,
• Lucia Cabriales,
• Luis Manuel León Rossano and
• Mathieu Hautefeuille

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 744–748, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.76

• the kinetics, morphology, composition and organization of the resulting residual nanostructures. Moreover, the complex nature of preceramic silicon-based polymers may also represent a limitation to the formation of PDC nanodomains. It has been reported that carbon nanostructures may be obtained

Observation of a photoinduced, resonant tunneling effect in a carbon nanotube–silicon heterojunction

• Carla Aramo,
• Antonio Ambrosio,
• Michelangelo Ambrosio,
• Maurizio Boscardin,
• Paola Castrucci,
• Michele Crivellari,
• Marco Cilmo,
• Maurizio De Crescenzi,
• Francesco De Nicola,
• Emanuele Fiandrini,
• Valentina Grossi,
• Pasqualino Maddalena,
• Maurizio Passacantando,
• Sandro Santucci,
• Manuela Scarselli and
• Antonio Valentini

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 704–710, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.71

• obtained by growing a continuous layer of multiwall carbon nanotubes on an n-doped silicon substrate. The multiwall carbon nanostructures were grown by a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technique on a 60 nm thick, silicon nitride layer, deposited on an n-type Si substrate. The heterojunction

Overview of nanoscale NEXAFS performed with soft X-ray microscopes

• Peter Guttmann and
• Carla Bittencourt

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 595–604, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.61

• region. It is important to mention that the study of the carbon K-edge is also a challenge in non-microscopic NEXAFS set-ups due to uncertainties in the normalization by the photon flux. Nevertheless, carbon nanostructures, like suspended carbon nanohorns (CNH) [66], or thin graphite sheets [2] could be

Filling of carbon nanotubes and nanofibres

• Reece D. Gately and
• Marc in het Panhuis

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 508–516, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.53

• filling these carbon nanostructures. We highlight that filled carbon nanostructures are an emerging material for biomedical applications. Keywords: applications; carbon nanostructures; filling; nanofibers; nanotubes; Introduction Carbon nanotubes are well-known, 1D nanostructures, which are comprised of

• unique structure is clearly visible in the microscopy image (Figure 1b,d) and the schematic representation (Figure 1c). The filling of these specific tubular carbon nanostructures (TCNSs) has attracted much interest due to their applications in gas storage (in particular H2) [32][33], electrochemical

• discussed in this review, as it is important to emphasize that both serve their own purposes. Review Approaches for filling carbon nanostructures Opening the capped ends It is well known that the as-produced TCNSs have one end capped [51], thus in order to achieve filling, the TCNSs must be opened. The

Raman spectroscopy as a tool to investigate the structure and electronic properties of carbon-atom wires

• Alberto Milani,
• Matteo Tommasini,
• Valeria Russo,
• Andrea Li Bassi,
• Andrea Lucotti,
• Franco Cataldo and
• Carlo S. Casari

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 480–491, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.49

• , Via Casilina 1626A, 00133 Roma, Italy 10.3762/bjnano.6.49 Abstract Graphene, nanotubes and other carbon nanostructures have shown potential as candidates for advanced technological applications due to the different coordination of carbon atoms and to the possibility of π-conjugation. In this context

• electronic structure from alternating to equalized bonds. Keywords: carbon nanostructures; cumulenes; polyynes; Raman spectroscopy; sp-hybridized carbon systems; Review Introduction Over the last decades carbon nanostructures have been widely investigated for their unique properties and for their potential

• Curl, as reported in the Nobel lecture by Kroto [21]. Even though a new allotrope based on sp carbon has still yet to be found, sp-hybridized carbon nanostructures (or large molecules) in the form of linear atomic wires can be now produced and investigated. Great interest has been shown in the

X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy of graphitic carbon nanomaterials doped with heteroatoms

• Toma Susi,
• Thomas Pichler and
• Paola Ayala

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 177–192, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.17

• have a value of 0.87 eV for the P 2p level, with the lower binding energy j = 3/2 component having an area twice as large as the j = 1/2 component [61]. However, in the studies reported so far, it has not been established whether these predictions directly apply to molecular carbon nanostructures. A

Liquid-phase exfoliated graphene: functionalization, characterization, and applications

• Mildred Quintana,
• Jesús Iván Tapia and
• Maurizio Prato

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 2328–2338, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.242

• surface energy of graphite (≈70–80 mJ∙m−2). This relatively high surface energy results in solvents with high boiling points and high surface tensions, for example, N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) and N-methyl-1,2-pyrrolidone (NMP), which are well-known as good dispersing solvents for carbon nanostructures

• edge carbon atoms. Rolling and sealing graphene An important potential application of exfoliated graphene is the tailored production of other carbon nanostructures such as fullerenes [29] and CNTs. To this effect, we have demonstrated the longstanding visualised strategy of rolling and sealing a

• graphene edges and converts the less stable scroll into a MWNT. This is an important step towards the controlled synthesis of carbon nanostructures. The interaction between graphene sheets and template molecules is expected to produce carbon nanostructures with well-defined properties such as diameter

Carbon nano-onions (multi-layer fullerenes): chemistry and applications

• Juergen Bartelmess and
• Silvia Giordani

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1980–1998, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.207

• )-functionalized CNOs were characterized by a multitude of techniques and showed an excellent solubility in protic solvents, which gives rise to several future applications of this material. In a follow-up study, the properties of CNO–PANI composites were compared to other PANI-decorated carbon nanostructures [46

• ]. In general, PANI films containing carbon nanostructures showed improved properties like a lower resistance and higher mechanical stability than pure PANI films. Another CNO-containing composite material was prepared from unmodified or oxidized CNOs and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly

• addition, the introduction of functional groups and functionalities for specific applications further improved the usability of CNO materials. However, while other carbon nanostructures have drawn large attention in a variety of fields of applications, CNOs can still be considered as being a niche of the

Donor–acceptor graphene-based hybrid materials facilitating photo-induced electron-transfer reactions

• Anastasios Stergiou,
• Georgia Pagona and
• Nikos Tagmatarchis

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1580–1589, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.170

• some donor–acceptor graphene-based hybrids, will be discussed. Keywords: donor–acceptor; electron-transfer; functionalization; graphene; photophysical properties; Introduction Among the outstanding forms of carbon nanostructures, graphene, a single layer of carbon, is a newly available material

Gas sensing with gold-decorated vertically aligned carbon nanotubes

• Prasantha R. Mudimela,
• Mattia Scardamaglia,
• Oriol González-León,
• Nicolas Reckinger,
• Rony Snyders,
• Eduard Llobet,
• Carla Bittencourt and
• Jean-François Colomer

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 910–918, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.104

• Prasantha R. Mudimela Mattia Scardamaglia Oriol Gonzalez-Leon Nicolas Reckinger Rony Snyders Eduard Llobet Carla Bittencourt Jean-Francois Colomer Research group on Carbon Nanostructures (CARBONNAGe), University of Namur, Belgium Chimie des Interactions Plasma-Surface (ChIPS), CIRMAP, Research

Nanostructure sensitization of transition metal oxides for visible-light photocatalysis

• Hongjun Chen and
• Lianzhou Wang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 696–710, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.82

• quantum dots, plasmonic metal nanostructures, and carbon nanostructures for coupling with wide-bandgap transition metal oxides to design better visible-light active photocatalysts. The underlying mechanisms of the composite photocatalysts, e.g., the light-induced charge separation and the subsequent

• visible-light photocatalytic reaction processes in environmental remediation and solar fuel generation fields, are also introduced. A brief outlook on the nanostructure photosensitization is also given. Keywords: carbon nanostructures; nanostructure sensitization; plasmonic metal nanostructures; quantum

• photosensitizer Carbon nanostructures as one of the important building blocks has been used in many research fields due to its unique properties such as good conductivity, chemical stability and high surface area. Carbon nanotube is a particular carbon nanostructure and displays a variety of unique properties

Structural, electronic and photovoltaic characterization of multiwalled carbon nanotubes grown directly on stainless steel

• Luca Camilli,
• Manuela Scarselli,
• Silvano Del Gobbo,
• Paola Castrucci,
• Eric Gautron and
• Maurizio De Crescenzi

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 360–367, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.42

• advantage of the native surface roughness and the iron content of AISI-316 stainless steel to grow multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) by chemical vapour deposition without the addition of an external catalyst. The structural and electronic properties of the synthesized carbon nanostructures have been