Article Title

Selection of single-walled carbon nanotubes according to both their diameter and chirality via nanotweezers

Authors

Jing Zhou, State Key Laboratory of Mesoscopic Physics and Department of Physics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
Hong Li, State Key Laboratory of Mesoscopic Physics and Department of Physics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
Jing Lu, State Key Laboratory of Mesoscopic Physics and Department of Physics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
Guangfu Luo, State Key Laboratory of Mesoscopic Physics and Department of Physics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
Lin Lai, State Key Laboratory of Mesoscopic Physics and Department of Physics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
Rui Qin, State Key Laboratory of Mesoscopic Physics and Department of Physics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
Lu Wang, State Key Laboratory of Mesoscopic Physics and Department of Physics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
Shigeru Nagase, Department of Theoretical Molecular Science, Institute for Molecular Science, Okazaki 444-8585, Japan
Zhengxiang Gao, State Key Laboratory of Mesoscopic Physics and Department of Physics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
Waining Mei, Department of Physics, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska 68182-0266, USA
Guangping Li, SICAS Center, Lee Hall, SUNY Oneonta, Oneonta, NY 13820, USA
Dapeng Yu, State Key Laboratory of Mesoscopic Physics and Department of Physics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
Stefano Sanvito, School of Physics and CRANN, Trinity College, Dublin 2, Ireland

Keywords

Carbon nanotubes, nanotweezer, selective adsorption, density functional theory

Abstract

Diameter- and chirality-dependent interactions between aromatic molecule-based nanotweezers and single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) are revealed by density functional theory calculations. We found that the threshold diameter of selected SWNTs is determined by the end-to-end distance of the nanotweezer. Large-diameter SWNTs are preferred by a nanotweezer with an obtuse folding angle, whereas small-diameter SWNTs are favored by a nanotweezer with an acute folding angle. The adsorption can be further stabilized by the orientational alignment of the hexagonal rings of the nanotweezer and the SWNT sidewall. Therefore, by taking advantage of the supramolecular recognition ability of the aromatic molecule-based nanotweezer, SWNTs can be enriched with both controllable diameter and chirality.

Graphical Abstract

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-010-1033-1

Publisher

Tsinghua University Press

Recommended Citation

Jing Zhou,Hong Li,Jing Lu,Guangfu Luo,Lin Lai,Rui Qin,Lu Wang,Shigeru Nagase,Zhengxiang Gao,Waining Mei,Guangping Li,Dapeng Yu,Stefano Sanvito, Selection of single-walled carbon nanotubes according to both their diameter and chirality via nanotweezers. NanoRes.2010, 3: 296–306