scispace - formally typeset
Search or ask a question
Journal ArticleDOI

Helical microtubules of graphitic carbon

Sumio Iijima1
01 Nov 1991-Nature (Nature Publishing Group)-Vol. 354, Iss: 6348, pp 56-58
TL;DR: Iijima et al. as mentioned in this paper reported the preparation of a new type of finite carbon structure consisting of needle-like tubes, which were produced using an arc-discharge evaporation method similar to that used for fullerene synthesis.
Abstract: THE synthesis of molecular carbon structures in the form of C60 and other fullerenes1 has stimulated intense interest in the structures accessible to graphitic carbon sheets. Here I report the preparation of a new type of finite carbon structure consisting of needle-like tubes. Produced using an arc-discharge evaporation method similar to that used for fullerene synthesis, the needles grow at the negative end of the electrode used for the arc discharge. Electron microscopy reveals that each needle comprises coaxial tubes of graphitic sheets, ranging in number from 2 up to about 50. On each tube the carbon-atom hexagons are arranged in a helical fashion about the needle axis. The helical pitch varies from needle to needle and from tube to tube within a single needle. It appears that this helical structure may aid the growth process. The formation of these needles, ranging from a few to a few tens of nanometres in diameter, suggests that engineering of carbon structures should be possible on scales considerably greater than those relevant to the fullerenes. On 7 November 1991, Sumio Iijima announced in Nature the preparation of nanometre-size, needle-like tubes of carbon — now familiar as 'nanotubes'. Used in microelectronic circuitry and microscopy, and as a tool to test quantum mechanics and model biological systems, nanotubes seem to have unlimited potential.
Citations
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI
Simon Haykin1
TL;DR: Following the discussion of interference temperature as a new metric for the quantification and management of interference, the paper addresses three fundamental cognitive tasks: radio-scene analysis, channel-state estimation and predictive modeling, and the emergent behavior of cognitive radio.
Abstract: Cognitive radio is viewed as a novel approach for improving the utilization of a precious natural resource: the radio electromagnetic spectrum. The cognitive radio, built on a software-defined radio, is defined as an intelligent wireless communication system that is aware of its environment and uses the methodology of understanding-by-building to learn from the environment and adapt to statistical variations in the input stimuli, with two primary objectives in mind: /spl middot/ highly reliable communication whenever and wherever needed; /spl middot/ efficient utilization of the radio spectrum. Following the discussion of interference temperature as a new metric for the quantification and management of interference, the paper addresses three fundamental cognitive tasks. 1) Radio-scene analysis. 2) Channel-state estimation and predictive modeling. 3) Transmit-power control and dynamic spectrum management. This work also discusses the emergent behavior of cognitive radio.

12,172 citations


Cites background from "Helical microtubules of graphitic c..."

  • ...Since the observation of multiwalled carbon nanotubes for the first time in transmission electron microscopy studies in 1991 by Iijima [ 86 ], carbon nanotubes have been explored extensively in theoretical and experimental studies of nanotechnology [87], [88]....

    [...]

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: By using micromechanical cleavage, a variety of 2D crystals including single layers of boron nitride, graphite, several dichalcogenides, and complex oxides are prepared and studied.
Abstract: We report free-standing atomic crystals that are strictly 2D and can be viewed as individual atomic planes pulled out of bulk crystals or as unrolled single-wall nanotubes. By using micromechanical cleavage, we have prepared and studied a variety of 2D crystals including single layers of boron nitride, graphite, several dichalcogenides, and complex oxides. These atomically thin sheets (essentially gigantic 2D molecules unprotected from the immediate environment) are stable under ambient conditions, exhibit high crystal quality, and are continuous on a macroscopic scale.

10,586 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
Sumio Iijima1, Toshinari Ichihashi1
17 Jun 1993-Nature
TL;DR: In this article, the authors reported the synthesis of abundant single-shell tubes with diameters of about one nanometre, whereas the multi-shell nanotubes are formed on the carbon cathode.
Abstract: CARBON nanotubes1 are expected to have a wide variety of interesting properties. Capillarity in open tubes has already been demonstrated2–5, while predictions regarding their electronic structure6–8 and mechanical strength9 remain to be tested. To examine the properties of these structures, one needs tubes with well defined morphologies, length, thickness and a number of concentric shells; but the normal carbon-arc synthesis10,11 yields a range of tube types. In particular, most calculations have been concerned with single-shell tubes, whereas the carbon-arc synthesis produces almost entirely multi-shell tubes. Here we report the synthesis of abundant single-shell tubes with diameters of about one nanometre. Whereas the multi-shell nanotubes are formed on the carbon cathode, these single-shell tubes grow in the gas phase. Electron diffraction from a single tube allows us to confirm the helical arrangement of carbon hexagons deduced previously for multi-shell tubes1.

8,018 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The interest in nanoscale materials stems from the fact that new properties are acquired at this length scale and, equally important, that these properties are equally important.
Abstract: The interest in nanoscale materials stems from the fact that new properties are acquired at this length scale and, equally important, that these properties * To whom correspondence should be addressed. Phone, 404-8940292; fax, 404-894-0294; e-mail, mostafa.el-sayed@ chemistry.gatech.edu. † Case Western Reserve UniversitysMillis 2258. ‡ Phone, 216-368-5918; fax, 216-368-3006; e-mail, burda@case.edu. § Georgia Institute of Technology. 1025 Chem. Rev. 2005, 105, 1025−1102

6,852 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: It is evident from the literature survey articles that ion-exchange, adsorption and membrane filtration are the most frequently studied for the treatment of heavy metal wastewater.

6,844 citations


Cites background from "Helical microtubules of graphitic c..."

  • ...Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) discovered by Iijima (1991) in 1991, have been widely studied for their excellent properties and applications....

    [...]

References
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI
01 Nov 1985-Nature
TL;DR: In this article, the authors proposed a truncated icosahedron, a polygon with 60 vertices and 32 faces, 12 of which are pentagonal and 20 hexagonal.
Abstract: During experiments aimed at understanding the mechanisms by which long-chain carbon molecules are formed in interstellar space and circumstellar shells1, graphite has been vaporized by laser irradiation, producing a remarkably stable cluster consisting of 60 carbon atoms. Concerning the question of what kind of 60-carbon atom structure might give rise to a superstable species, we suggest a truncated icosahedron, a polygon with 60 vertices and 32 faces, 12 of which are pentagonal and 20 hexagonal. This object is commonly encountered as the football shown in Fig. 1. The C60 molecule which results when a carbon atom is placed at each vertex of this structure has all valences satisfied by two single bonds and one double bond, has many resonance structures, and appears to be aromatic. Before 1985, it was generally accepted that elemental carbon exists in two forms, or allotropes: diamond and graphite. Then, Kroto et al. identified the signature of a new, stable form of carbon that consisted of clusters of 60 atoms. They called this third allotrope of carbon 'buckminsterfullerene', and proposed that it consisted of polyhedral molecules in which the atoms were arrayed at the vertices of a truncated icosahedron. In 1990, the synthesis of large quantities of C60 [see Nature 347, 354–358 (1990)] confirmed this hypothesis.

13,394 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
27 Sep 1990-Nature
TL;DR: In this article, a new form of pure, solid carbon has been synthesized consisting of a somewhat disordered hexagonal close packing of soccer-ball-shaped C60 molecules.
Abstract: A new form of pure, solid carbon has been synthesized consisting of a somewhat disordered hexagonal close packing of soccer-ball-shaped C60 molecules. Infrared spectra and X-ray diffraction studies of the molecular packing confirm that the molecules have the anticipated 'fullerene' structure. Mass spectroscopy shows that the C70 molecule is present at levels of a few per cent. The solid-state and molecular properties of C60 and its possible role in interstellar space can now be studied in detail.

6,650 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Carbon fibres have been prepared by pyrolysing a mixture of benzene and hydrogen at about 1100°C and have been studied by high resolution electron microscopy.

1,540 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
Susumu Saito1, Atsushi Oshiyama1
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present microscopic total energy calculations which provide a cohesive property and electronic structures of a new form of solid carbon, the face-centered-cubic crystal (fcc ${\mathrm{C}}_{60}$).
Abstract: We present microscopic total-energy calculations which provide a cohesive property and electronic structures of a new form of solid carbon, the face-centered-cubic ${\mathrm{C}}_{60}$ crystal (fcc ${\mathrm{C}}_{60}$). We find that ${\mathrm{C}}_{60}$ clusters are condensed by van der Waals force, and that the resulting fcc ${\mathrm{O}}_{60}$ is a novel semiconductor with direct energy gap of 1.5 eV at the Brillouin-zone boundary (X point). We also find that an ``impurity'' ${\mathrm{C}}_{60}$K cluster induces a shallow donor state in fcc ${\mathrm{C}}_{60}$.

768 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Graphite whiskers have been grown in a dc arc under a pressure of 92 atmospheres of argon and at 3900°K as discussed by the authors, with recoverable lengths up to 3 cm. They are embedded in a solid matrix of graphite which builds up by diffusion of carbon vapor from the positive to the negative electrode.
Abstract: Graphite whiskers have been grown in a dc arc under a pressure of 92 atmospheres of argon and at 3900°K. They are embedded in a solid matrix of graphite which builds up by diffusion of carbon vapor from the positive to the negative electrode. Diameters range from a fraction of a micron to over five microns, with recoverable lengths up to 3 cm. They consist of one or more concentric tubes, each tube being in the form of a scroll, or rolled‐up sheet of graphite layers, extending continuously along the length of the whisker, with the c axis exactly perpendicular to the whisker axis. They exhibit a high degree of flexibility, tensile strengths up to 2000 kg‐mm−2, Young's modulus in excess of 7×1012 dyne‐cm−2, and values of room‐temperature resistivity of around 65 μohm‐cm, which approximates the single crystal value.

592 citations