Control of the Diameter and Chiral Angle Distributions During Production of Single-Wall Carbon Nanotubes

Pulsed laser vaporization (PLV) production of single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) on traditional Co/Ni catalyst was explored with respect to variations in the production temperature. The Rh/Pd results were also reproduced for comparison. The nanotube-type populations were measured via photoluminescence (PL), UV-Vis-NIR (ultraviolet-visible-near-infrared) absorption, and Raman spectroscopy. A small reduction in the average nanotube diameter at lowered production temperature has long been known to occur; however, temperature effect on nanotube population (and not just for diameters) has never been explored.