Visible and ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy of fullerenes using femtosecond laser pulses

Photoelectron spectra are presented for C60 excited with fs pulses of wavelengths 532 and 267 nm. The spectra indicate a quick redistribution of the excitation energy. Excitation of SAMO states is observed with 532 nm excitation, but due to the relatively large photon energy of the 267 nm pulses, these orbitals are not populated for this wavelength

Super-atom molecular orbital excited states of fullerenes

Super-atom molecular orbitals are orbitals that form diffuse hydrogenic excited electronic states of fullerenes with their electron density centred at the centre of the hollow carbon cage and a significant electron density inside the cage. This is a consequence of the high symmetry and hollow structure of the molecules and distinguishes them from typical low-lying molecular Rydberg states. This review summarizes the current experimental and theoretical studies related to these exotic excited electronic states with emphasis on femtosecond photoelectron spectroscopy experiments on gas-phase fullerenes. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Fullerenes: past, present and future, celebrating the 30th anniversary of Buckminster Fullerene’

Local heating method for growth of aligned carbon nanotubes at low ambient temperature

We use a highly localised resistive heating technique to grow vertically aligned multiwalled nanotube films and aligned single-walled nanotubes on substrates with an average temperature of less than 100oC. The temperature at the catalyst can easily be as high as 1000 oC but an extremely high temperature gradient ensures that the surrounding chip is held at much lower temperatures, even as close as 1μm away from the local heater. We demonstrate the influence of temperature on the height of multi-walled nanotube films, illustrate the feasibility of sequential growth of single-walled nanotubes by switching between local heaters and also show that nanotubes can be grown over temperature sensitive materials such as resist polymer

Carbon nanotube bolometers

A cryogenic bolometer has been fabricated using a bundle of single-walled carbon nanotubes as absorber. A bolometric response was observed when the device was exposed to radiation at 110 GHz. The temperature response was 0.4 mV/K, with an intrinsic electrical responsivity at low frequency up to 109 V/W and noise equivalent power of 3 710−16 W/Hz1/2 at 4.2 K. The response is largest at input power levels of a few femtowatts and decreases inversely proportional to the input power. Low frequency noise shows a 1/f dependence

Role of remote interfacial phonons in the resistivity of graphene

The temperature ($\it T$) dependence of electrical resistivity in graphene has been experimentally investigated between 10 and 400 K for samples prepared on various substrates; HfO$_2$, SiO$_2$ and h-BN. The resistivity of graphene shows a linear $\it T$-dependence at low $\it T$ and becomes superlinear above a substrate-dependent transition temperature. The results are explained by remote interfacial phonon scattering by surface optical phonons at the substrates. The use of an appropriate substrate can lead to a significant improvement in the charge transport of graphene

Nanodrawing of aligned single carbon nanotubes with a nanopen

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) are considered pivotal components for molecular electronics. Techniques for SWCNT lithography today lack simplicity, flexibility, and speed of direct, oriented deposition at specific target locations. In this paper SWCNTs are directly drawn and placed with chemical identification and demonstrated orientation using fountain pen nanolithography (FPN) under ambient conditions. Placement across specific electrical contacts with such alignment is demonstrated and characterized. The fundamental basis of the drawing process with alignment has potential applications for other related systems such as inorganic nanotubes, polymers, and biological molecules