Carbon nanotube-semiconductor hybrid nanostructure

Abstract

The discovery of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) has inspired extensive research activities unprecedented in nanoscience and nanotechnology. CNTs are very versatile due to their small diameter, high aspect ratio, great structural integrity, high electrical and thermal conductivity, exceptional strength and resilience. Semiconducting nanoparticles with sizes between 1 and 100 nm have attracted considerable attention because of their distinctive electronic, optical, magnetic, mechanical, and chemical properties that differ from those of both their constituent atoms/molecules and their corresponding bulk materials. Combining CNTs with semiconducting nanoparticles will form a new class of hybrid nanostructure that could potentially demonstrate not only the unique properties of nanoparticles and nanotubes, but also additional novel physical and chemical properties due to the interaction between CNTs and the attached semiconducting nanoparticles.

In the author's project, Zinc Oxide nanoparticles were grown on Multi-Walled Carbon nanotube to form the MWCNT-ZnO hybrid structure. The synergistic effect of the hybrid structure were investigated, particularly its photoconductive behavior, tenability of the photoconductivity and photoresponse kinetics.