The Kirkendall effect and nanoscience: hollow nanospheres and nanotubes

• Abdel-Aziz El Mel,
• Ryusuke Nakamura and
• Carla Bittencourt

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1348–1361, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.139

• a solid state reaction, occurring upon thermal annealing of core–shell ZnO/Al2O3 nanowires [23][62]. In such a process, the material forming the nanotube is defined by the two initial compounds constituting the core and the shell. As it can be seen in Figure 8, the formation of voids occurs at the

• nanoparticles are formed, the Ni ions will diffuse laterally toward the outside of the nanotube. As this event occurs during oxidation, the segmented-like nanostructure transforms into a bamboo-like one. The presence of very high strain generated during oxidation due to the lattice mismatch between the metal

Heterometal nanoparticles from Ru-based molecular clusters covalently anchored onto functionalized carbon nanotubes and nanofibers

• Deborah Vidick,
• Xiaoxing Ke,
• Michel Devillers,
• Claude Poleunis,
• Arnaud Delcorte,
• Pietro Moggi,
• Gustaaf Van Tendeloo and
• Sophie Hermans

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1287–1297, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.133

• , (b) an amorphous layer can be seen around the nanoparticles at higher magnification. HAADF-STEM image of Ru–Pt/MWNT derived from Ru5PtC(CO)14(COD) (4). STEM-EDX of individual nanoclusters. (a) HAADF-STEM image of a nanotube with metal clusters. The spectra were collected from point 1 (larger

• particles ≈2–3 nm diameter particles) and point 2 (smaller particles <1nm). The corresponding spectra are shown as (c) point 1 and (d) point 2. (b) HAADF-STEM image of the same nanotube after spectra acquisition. The smaller particles where the spectrum in (d) is collected has been destroyed, see circled

Tattoo ink nanoparticles in skin tissue and fibroblasts

• Colin A. Grant,
• Peter C. Twigg,
• Richard Baker and
• Desmond J. Tobin

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1183–1191, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.120

• cytotoxicity potential [12], although carbon nanotube toxicity differs according to the production method used [13]. Moreover, the carbon black nanoparticles found in tattoo ink have safety profiles comparable to multi-walled carbon nanotubes [14]. Thus, there is a need to more accurately assess how tattoo ink

Electronic interaction in composites of a conjugated polymer and carbon nanotubes: first-principles calculation and photophysical approaches

• Florian Massuyeau,
• Jany Wéry,
• Jean-Luc Duvail,
• Serge Lefrant,
• Abu Yaya,
• Chris Ewels and
• Eric Faulques

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 1138–1144, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.115

• this assumption, and show that it is not valid; the semiconducting tubes are in fact rendered semi-metallic due to interaction with nearby PPV. Figure 1c shows that the ratio Ipc/Idark drops dramatically at very low nanotube concentrations, typically between 1 and 2% indicating that the dark current

• dominates the photocurrent above this threshold with conduction paths provided solely by highly conductive carbon nanotubes. In consequence PC data demonstrates an increasing density of charge carriers on SWNTs when x increases. In order to understand the nature of PPV–nanotube interactions further we

• performed density functional (DFT) calculations under the local density approximation as implemented in the AIMPRO code [21][22], on a triphenyl PPV section (C22H18) oriented parallel to the axis of a metallic (4,4) and semiconducting (7,0) nanotube chosen due to their similar diameters. PPV is arranged

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

Pt- and Pd-decorated MWCNTs for vapour and gas detection at room temperature

• Hamdi Baccar,
• Atef Thamri,
• Pierrick Clément,
• Eduard Llobet and
• Adnane Abdelghani

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 919–927, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.95

• temperatures [18]) thus enabling the development of low-power sensors [13][19]. This is essential for achieving long-life, battery-operated, wearable detectors. Furthermore, carbon nanotube sensors can be easily miniaturised, which is not the case for electrochemical sensors [20]. Pristine carbon nanotubes are

• known to weakly interact with VOCs in general and with aromatic VOCs in particular. Therefore, a functionalisation of the carbon nanotube sidewalls is essential to promote sensitivity. In previous works, we used oxygen-plasma-treated multiwalled carbon nanotubes for detecting nitrogen dioxide, ammonia

• affects the sensitivity and selectivity of the hybrid carbon nanotube material. The idea is to use nanoparticles that donate or accept charge upon adsorption of vapours or gas molecules, which eventually alters the electron transport in the carbon nanotube [26]. Kumar et al. published the first

Transformation of hydrogen titanate nanoribbons to TiO₂ nanoribbons and the influence of the transformation strategies on the photocatalytic performance

• Melita Rutar,
• Nejc Rozman,
• Matej Pregelj,
• Carla Bittencourt,
• Romana Cerc Korošec,
• Andrijana Sever Škapin,
• Aleš Mrzel,
• Srečo D. Škapin and
• Polona Umek

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 831–844, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.86

• ][15] and due to the structural similarities between these three structures, the morphology is preserved during these transformations. In general, the nanotube morphology is more desirable because of its high specific surface area. However, due to their denser structure, nanoribbons and nanowires are

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

• respond to incident light in the visible and near-ultraviolet region and to generate a photocurrent. Keywords: carbon nanotube sponge; electrochemical; hydrophobicity; lipophilicity; Introduction In the last years, there has been growing interest in developing natural and synthetic three-dimensional

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

• , Sezione di Bari and Dipartimento di Fisica, Università degli Studi di Bari, Via Amendola 173, 70126 Bari, Italy 10.3762/bjnano.6.71 Abstract A significant resonant tunneling effect has been observed under the 2.4 V junction threshold in a large area, carbon nanotube–silicon (CNT–Si) heterojunction

• -based devices have been attributed to the photon-induced generation of charge carriers in single-wall CNTs and the subsequent charge separation across the carbon nanotube–metal contact interface [11]. To the best of our knowledge, there is a lack of measurements in the UV region [8], and moreover, there

• –2.4 eV that is a convolution of the several electronic transitions occurring in each nanotube. The contacts among the nanotubes ensure the charge transfer between the nanotubes and the observation in the I–V curve. The bell shape of the absorption band detected in the I–V spectra mimics that observed

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

• nanoscale structures are becoming more and more important. Not only for the further miniaturization of semiconductor devices like carbon nanotube based transistors, but also for newly developed efficient energy storage devices, gas sensors or catalytic systems nanoscale and functionalized materials have to

Chains of carbon atoms: A vision or a new nanomaterial?

• Florian Banhart

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 559–569, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.58

• of states in the contacting material at low energy is small. Another aspect is the local hybridization of the carbon atoms at the contact. A sp3-hybridized carbon atom (e.g., when the chain is connected to the middle of a graphenic sheet or the wall of a carbon nanotube as shown in Figure 5) leads to

• -wall carbon nanotube [61]. The smallest experimentally identified carbon nanotube is the (3,3) nanotube with a diameter of 4 Å. The instability of extremely thin nanotubes is due to the increasing pyramidalization angle in small sp2 structures, leading to an increasing sp3 character of the bonds. The

• is shown in the inset. Different hybridization states of the end atoms of carbon chains when they are connected to a graphitic contact. The contact atoms are marked in red. As an example, chains are attached to the closed end of a carbon nanotube (left), leading to local sp3-hybridization, and to an

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

• MWCNT, the metals acted as a catalyst to create a nanotube with a single wall. Similar to MWCNTs, the physical properties (inside diameter, length, degree of graphitization) of SWCNTs vary with the production method [12]. For example, during the synthesis of SWCNTs using pulsed laser vaporization (PLV

Hollow plasmonic antennas for broadband SERS spectroscopy

• Gabriele C. Messina,
• Mario Malerba,
• Pierfrancesco Zilio,
• Ermanno Miele,
• Michele Dipalo,
• Lorenzo Ferrara and
• Francesco De Angelis

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 492–498, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.50

• electromagnetic hotspot at the tip of the antenna leads to the assumption that the plasmonic properties of the antennas will present a specific distribution along the nanotube height. To confirm such a hypothesis, measurements of Raman scattering intensities of a monolayer of cresyl violet dye have been performed

• simulations of a silver nanotube with 1.4 µm height, 160 nm width, surface roughness of 4 nm and illuminated by TM polarized light impinging at 5°. The blue line represents the electric field enhancement calculated 1 nm above the upper antenna edge and normalized with respect to the impinging wave amplitude

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

• technological applications [1]. For instance, single wall carbon nanotubes represent quasi-1D systems whose electronic properties are strongly related to the nanotube structure (i.e., chirality), while graphene is a 2D system with appealing electronic and optical properties [2][3][4]. In addition to structures

• information on their structure, hybridization state, defects, presence of functionalization and/or doping, and can even quantify the nanotube chirality, the number of layers and the edge structure in graphene [22][23]. In this review we discuss how Raman spectroscopy can be utilized to obtain a wealth of

Exploiting the hierarchical morphology of single-walled and multi-walled carbon nanotube films for highly hydrophobic coatings

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

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 353–360, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.34

• surfaces. Here, we report single-walled (SWCNT) and multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) thin films realized by a simple, rapid, reproducible, and inexpensive filtration process from an aqueous dispersion, that was deposited at room temperature by a dry-transfer printing method on glass. Furthermore, the

• investigation of carbon nanotube films through scanning electron microscopy (SEM) reveals the multi-scale hierarchical morphology of the self-assembled carbon nanotube random networks. Moreover, contact angle measurements show that hierarchical SWCNT/MWCNT composite surfaces exhibit a higher hydrophobicity

• (contact angles of up to 137°) than bare SWCNT (110°) and MWCNT (97°) coatings, thereby confirming the enhancement produced by the surface hierarchical morphology. Keywords: hierarchical structures; hydrophobic surfaces; multi-walled carbon nanotube; single-walled carbon nanotube; wetting transitions

Release behaviour and toxicity evaluation of levodopa from carboxylated single-walled carbon nanotubes

• Julia M. Tan,
• Jhi Biau Foo,
• Sharida Fakurazi and
• Mohd Zobir Hussein

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 243–253, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.23

• starting material shown in Figure 3A (whereby the nanotube surface is relatively clean and smooth). The FESEM images were consistent with the images obtained by transmission electron microscope (TEM), as presented in Figure 4. The internal structure of SWCNT–COOH appeared to be free from metallic

• slides and detailed scans were performed in the 100–2000 cm−1 range. The nanotube product was first ultrasonicated in ethanol using a PowerSonic 420 (Hwashin Technology Co., Korea) device. Several droplets of the nanotube suspension were deposited onto a glass slide and then air dried at room temperature

Boosting the local anodic oxidation of silicon through carbon nanofiber atomic force microscopy probes

• Gemma Rius,
• Matteo Lorenzoni,
• Soichiro Matsui,
• Masaki Tanemura and
• Francesc Perez-Murano

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 215–222, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.20

• -AFM, because it regulates the minimum feature size and the electric field. For instance, the feasibility of carbon nanotube (CNT)-functionalized tips showed great promise for LAO-AFM, yet, the fabrication of CNT tips presents difficulties. Here, we explore the use of a carbon nanofiber (CNF) as the

• morphologically and chemically degrades during its use, the conditions and the results of LAO-AFM are dramatically affected or even lost. It has been proposed, as one possibility to overcome this issue, the use of carbon nanotube (CNT)-functionalized tips [14][15]. With excellent electronic conduction, mechanical

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 received major attention, starting with the discovery of fullerenes in the late 1980s [1][2], followed by the proliferation of carbon nanotube research from the early 1990s [3][4][5], and coming finally to the latest stage when graphene rose into prominence in the mid-2000s [6][7][8]. Due to the

• diameter [14][89]. It is also possible that there are several concentric walls approximately separated by the graphite interlayer distance; such tubes are called multiwalled (MWCNTs), with the double-walled (DWCNT) being a somewhat special case [90]. Carbon nanotube samples have two crucial differences

• thus their photoemission response is a convolution of these two different signals. In the past few years, this challenge has been overcome by the development of methods for separating nanotube samples according to their metallicity or even chirality [91][92][93]. Photoemission measurements from both

Materials and characterization techniques for high-temperature polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells

• Roswitha Zeis

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2015, 6, 68–83, doi:10.3762/bjnano.6.8

• incorporated into MEAs for cell performances testing. The single cells achieved a peak power of over 100 mW/cm2 at 120 °C with a relatively low platinum loading (0.45 mg/cm2) for both the cathode and the anode. Binder: The polymer-wrapped carbon nanotube catalyst concept elegantly incorporates the binder PBI

Nanobioarchitectures based on chlorophyll photopigment, artificial lipid bilayers and carbon nanotubes

• Marcela Elisabeta Barbinta-Patrascu,
• Stefan Marian Iordache,
• Ana Maria Iordache,
• Nicoleta Badea and
• Camelia Ungureanu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 2316–2325, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.240

• carbon nanotubes [18]. Bianco et al. [19] showed that carbon nanotube biofunctionalization lead not only to the improved solubility and biocompatibility of CNTs, but also transformed them into platforms for biomedical applications. Carbon nanotubes are generally considered biocompatible and of low

• efficient energy transfer between the Chla molecules incorporated in liposomes (ordered along SWCNTs) as a result of interaction with the carbon nanotube sidewall. These findings are in agreement with our previous studies [4][5]. As can be seen in both Figure 4 and Figure 5, the liquid crystal phase of

• their aggregation; spherical-shaped profiles of liposomes could be observed along and near the carbon nanotubes. Thus, a carbon nanotube network was formed by the cross-linking of CNTs via liposomes with islands of lipid vesicles. This proves that the bionanocomposite undergoes self-assembly in an

Electrical contacts to individual SWCNTs: A review

• Wei Liu,
• Christofer Hierold and
• Miroslav Haluska

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 2202–2215, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.229

• mechanical properties [1][2][3] as well as thermal and electrical conductivity [4][5], enabling ballistic charge carrier transport up to the microscale at room temperature [6][7]. The emergence of carbon nanotube field-effect transistors (CNFETs) using SWCNTs as the device channel provides a possible

• [9]. Recently, the concept of a CNFET-based single processor was successfully implemented by Shulaker et al. [10]. These achievements reflect the great progress in fabrication technology that is advancing carbon nanotube technology closer to reality. For SWCNT-based devices, the nanotubes must be

• connected to electrical circuitry, which is typically achieved by contacting the SWCNTs with metal. Due to possible low channel resistance (or even ballistic conduction), the metal–nanotube contact resistance can dominate the performance of these transistors. Devices with a low Schottky barrier height (SBH

Advances in NO₂ sensing with individual single-walled carbon nanotube transistors

• Kiran Chikkadi,
• Matthias Muoth,
• Cosmin Roman,
• Miroslav Haluska and
• Christofer Hierold

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 2179–2191, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.227

• attached to their surface. This property has generated interest for their application in sensing gases, chemicals and biomolecules. With over a decade of research, a clearer picture of the interactions between the carbon nanotube and its surroundings has been achieved. In this review, we intend to

• summarize the current knowledge on this topic, focusing not only on the effect of adsorbates but also the effect of dielectric charge traps on the electrical transport in single-walled carbon nanotube transistors that are to be used in sensing applications. Recently, contact-passivated, open-channel

• individual single-walled carbon nanotube field-effect transistors have been shown to be operational at room temperature with ultra-low power consumption. Sensor recovery within minutes through UV illumination or self-heating has been shown. Improvements in fabrication processes aimed at reducing the impact

Two-dimensional and tubular structures of misfit compounds: Structural and electronic properties

• Tommy Lorenz,
• Jan-Ole Joswig and
• Gotthard Seifert

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 2171–2178, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.226

• SiO4 rings. (a) Top view, (b) side view with the depiction of the spontaneous bending of the layers and the C–Si bonds and (c) a carbon nanotube is surrounded by a cylindrical SiOx (x = 5/2) layer. Carbon, oxygen, and silicon atoms are colored in light gray, dark gray, and black, respectively. Cell

Modification of a single-molecule AFM probe with highly defined surface functionality

• Fei Long,
• Bin Cao,
• Ashok Khanal,
• Shiyue Fang and
• Reza Shahbazian-Yassar

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 2122–2128, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.221

• resulted in uncertainties concerning quantity and location of molecules being studied [1]. To improve the reproducibility of experimental results, covalent attachment methods are preferred. Wong and co-authors attached a single-wall carbon nanotube (SW-CNT) to the tip of an AFM probe [15]. The carboxylic

Sequence-dependent electrical response of ssDNA-decorated carbon nanotube, field-effect transistors to dopamine

• Hari Krishna Salila Vijayalal Mohan,
• Jianing An and
• Lianxi Zheng

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 2113–2121, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.220

• , Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates 10.3762/bjnano.5.220 Abstract Single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT)-based field-effect transistors (FETs) have been explored for use as biological/chemical sensors. Dopamine (DA) is a biomolecule with great clinical significance for disease diagnosis, however, SWCNT

• : carbon nanotube; deoxyribonucleic acid; dopamine; field-effect transistor; uric acid; Introduction Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) are excellent chemical/biological sensing materials because of their ultra-high sensitivity, fast response, and size compatibility, as compared to traditional

• ]. The use of an electronic detection technique with a chemically modified CNT surface that recognizes DA and selectively screens the interferent is a potential solution to overcome these hurdles. Surface modification improves the interaction strength between the nanotube and DA, thereby enhancing the