Efficient synthesis of gadolinium carbide encapsulating carbon nanocapsules

摘要

Gadolinium carbide encapsulating carbon nanocapsules (GdC2@CNCs) are a type of carbon nanoparticle that resemble the structure of endohedral fullerenes such as Gd@C-82. We present the results of a study to synthesize GdC2@CNCs efficiently using an arc-discharge method. GdC2@CNCs were synthesized using arc-discharging graphite anodes with various gadolinium concentrations under various He gas pressures. The optimum synthesis conditions for a high yield of GdC2@CNCs consisted of a Gd concentration of 1.3 at.%, a He pressure of 100 Torr and an arc-discharge current of 70 A.