Synthesis and characterization of a grapevine nanostructure consisting of single-walled carbon nanotubes with covalently attached [60]fullerene balls

摘要

A grapevine nanostructure based on single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) covalently functionalized with [60]fullerene (C-60) has been synthesized and characterized in detail. Investigations into the ball-on-tube carbon nanostructure by ESR spectroscopy indicate a tendency for ground-state electron transfer from the SWNT to the C-60 moieties. The cyclic-voltammetric response of the nanostructure film exhibits reversible multiple-step electrochemical reactions of the dispersed C-60, which are strikingly similar to those of the C60 derivatives in solution, but with consistent negative shifts in the redox potential. This results from the covalent linkage of C-60 to the surfaces of the SWNTs in the form of monomers and manifests the electronic interaction between the C-60 and SWNT moieties.