Selective Enhancement of Photoluminescence in Filled Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes

Author(s)
Xianjie Liu, Hans Kuzmany, Paola Ayala, Matteo Calvaresi, Francesco Zerbetto, Thomas Pichler
Abstract

The insertion of organometallic molecules into the hollow core of single-walled carbon nanotubes can drastically change their properties. Using biocompatible standardized suspensions of pristine, opened, and filled nanotubes, a very selective enhancement of the photoluminescence and optical absorption is observed. Via ferrocene encapsulation, the PL signal increases almost by a factor of three for tubes with chiralities such as (8,6) and (9,5). This behavior is attributed to a local electron charge transfer from the ferrocene molecules that balances out the p-type doping of the nanotubes resulting from the modified charge distribution of the surfactant molecules and the opening process. The near infrared photoluminescence of the nanotubes in solution is strongly enhanced when ferrocene is encapsulated. The diameter-dependent charge transfer is additionally confirmed by first principles calculations. These findings highlight an essential ingredient to optimize the application of solvated nanotubes, for instance, as invivo near infrared sensors in biomedical research.

Organisation(s)
Electronic Properties of Materials
External organisation(s)
University of Bologna
Journal
Advanced Functional Materials
Volume
22
Pages
3202-3208
No. of pages
7
ISSN
1616-301X
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.201200224
Publication date
2012
Peer reviewed
Yes
Austrian Fields of Science 2012
103015 Condensed matter, 103018 Materials physics
Portal url
https://ucris.univie.ac.at/portal/en/publications/selective-enhancement-of-photoluminescence-in-filled-singlewalled-carbon-nanotubes(8b06316e-03bc-427f-9896-b44a47fda1ea).html