Teslaphoresis of Carbon Nanotubes.

This paper introduces Teslaphoresis, the directed motion and self-assembly of matter by a Tesla coil, and studies this electrokinetic phenomenon using single-walled carbon nanotubes (CNTs). Conventional directed self-assembly of matter using electric fields has been restricted to small scale structures, but with Teslaphoresis, we exceed this limitation by using the Tesla coil's antenna to create a gradient high-voltage force field that projects into free space. CNTs placed within the Teslaphoretic (TEP) field polarize and self-assemble into wires that span from the nanoscale to the macroscale, the longest thus far being 15 cm.

In situ evidence for chirality-dependent growth rates of individual carbon nanotubes.

Chiral-selective growth of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) remains a great challenge that hinders their use in applications such as electronics and medicine. Recent experimental and theoretical reports have begun to address this problem by suggesting that selectivity may be achieved during nucleation by changing the catalyst composition or structure. Nevertheless, to establish a rational basis for chiral-selective synthesis, the underlying mechanisms governing nucleation, growth, and termination of SWNTs must be better understood.

Length- and defect-dependent fluorescence efficiencies of individual single-walled carbon nanotubes.

Using near-infrared fluorescence videomicroscopy with spectrally selective excitation and imaging, more than 400 individual (10,2) single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) have been studied in unsorted liquid dispersions. For each nanotube, the spatially integrated emission intensity was measured under controlled excitation conditions while its length was found either from direct imaging or from the diffusion coefficient computed by analyzing its Brownian motion trajectory. The studied nanotubes ranged in length from 170 to 5300 nm.

Dry contact transfer printing of aligned carbon nanotube patterns and characterization of their optical properties for diameter distribution and alignment.

A scalable and facile approach is demonstrated where as-grown patterns of well-aligned structures composed of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNT) synthesized via water-assisted chemical vapor deposition (CVD) can be transferred, or printed, to any host surface in a single dry, room-temperature step using the growth substrate as a stamp. We demonstrate compatibility of this process with multiple transfers for large-scale device and specifically tailored pattern fabrication. Utilizing this transfer approach, anisotropic optical properties of the SWNT films are probed via polarized absorption, Raman, and photoluminescence spectroscopies.