The discovery and understanding of nanoscale phenomena and the assembly of nanostructures into different devices are among the most promising fields of material science research. In this scenario, ...carbon nanostructures have a special role since, in having only one chemical element, they allow physical properties to be calculated with high precision for comparison with experiment. Carbon nanostructures, and carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in particular, have such remarkable electronic and structural properties that they are used as active building blocks for a large variety of nanoscale devices. We review here the latest advances in research involving carbon nanotubes as active components in electronic and optoelectronic nano-devices. Opportunities for future research are also identified.
The bulk synthesis of freestanding carbon nanotube (CNT) frameworks is developed through a sulfur-addition strategy during an ambient-pressure chemical vapour deposition process, with ferrocene used ...as the catalyst precursor. This approach enhances the CNTs' length and contorted morphology, which are the key features leading to the formation of the synthesized porous networks. We demonstrate that such a three-dimensional structure selectively uptakes from water a mass of toxic organic solvent (i.e. o-dichlorobenzene) about 3.5 times higher than that absorbed by individual CNTs. In addition, owing to the presence of highly defective nanostructures constituting them, our samples exhibit an oil-absorption capacity higher than that reported in the literature for similar CNT sponges.
Photocurrent amplification by gate effect in a three terminal carbon nanotube /n-Si photodetector.
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•Three terminal Carbon Nanotube/n-Si photodetectors.•Time response to nanosecond ...laser pulse.•Collecting photocharges by interdigitated electrodes.•Voltage doping in carbon nanotube/n-Si photodetectors.
We investigated the response of carbon nanotube/Si photodetectors to nanosecond light pulse using two electrode configurations for photovoltaic and photoconductive operations. When operating in photovoltaic mode, the devices show a linear dependence of the photocurrent as a function of the light pulse energy with rise time of 20 ns. In photoconductive mode, an increase of the maximum photocurrent as high as 30 times and a gain in the number of photogenerated charges up to 200% is recorded with a correspondent decrease in the time response below 10 ns. Current voltage characteristics measured as a function of the temperature indicate that the fast response of these devices can be ascribed to the formation of Schottky junctions at carbon nanotube/Si interface. These results make our devices comparable to most commercial photodetectors and pave the way for their use as avalanche photomultipliers.
To take advantage of the graphene appealing electronic properties, in this work we present a photodetector (PD) based on graphene/n-silicon heterojunction (GSH). In this device, graphene acts as ...light transmitter, counter electrode junction element and photocarrier collector. The photodetector has been provided with metal contacts allowing either photovoltaic or photoconductive operation mode. We investigated the response of GSH PD to a 35-femtosecond laser pulse. In the photovoltaic configuration, the PD exhibits rise times of some tens of nanoseconds, detecting light from ultraviolet (275 nm) to infrared (1150 nm). In photoconductive mode applying a gate voltage VG, the external quantum efficiency hugely increases, from a value of 2% up to 200%. Together with the observation of a rise time, that decreases down to a minimum value of about 1 ns, this makes our device even more competitive and comparable with commercial photodetectors.
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Graphene (Gr) is known to be an excellent barrier preventing atoms and molecules to diffuse through it. This is due to the carbon atom arrangement in a two-dimensional (2D) honeycomb structure with a ...very small lattice parameter forming an electron cloud that prevents atoms and molecules crossing. Nonetheless at high annealing temperatures, intercalation of atoms through graphene occurs, opening the path for formation of vertical heterojunctions constituted of two-dimensional layers. In this paper, we report on the ability of silicon atoms to penetrate the graphene network, fully epitaxially grown on a Ni(111) surface, even at room temperature. Our scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) experiments show that the presence of defects like vacancies and dislocations in the graphene lattice favor the Si atoms intercalation, forming two-dimensional, flat and disordered islands below the Gr layer. Ab-initio molecular dynamics calculations confirm that Gr defects are necessary for Si intercalation at room temperature and show that: i) a hypothetical intercalated silicene layer cannot be stable for more than 8 ps and ii) the corresponding Si atoms completely lose their in-plane order, resulting in a random planar distribution, and form strong covalent bonds with Ni atoms.
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Ultra-thin Silicon Nanowires (SiNWs) were produced by means of an industrial inductively-coupled plasma (ICP) based process. Two families of SiNWs have been identified, namely long SiNWs (up to 2-3 ...micron in length) and shorter ones (~100 nm). SiNWs were found to consist of a Si core (with diameter as thin as 2 nm) and a silica shell, of which the thickness varies from 5 to 20 nm. By combining advanced transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques, we demonstrate that the growth of the long SiNWs occurred via the Oxide Assisted Growth (OAG) mechanism, while the Vapor Liquid Solid (VLS) mechanism is responsible for the growth of shorter ones. Energy filtered TEM analyses revealed, in some cases, the existence of chapelet-like Si nanocrystals embedded in an otherwise silica nanowire. Such nanostructures are believed to result from the exposure of some OAG SiNWs to high temperatures prevailing inside the reactor. Finally, the intense photoluminescence (PL) of these ICP-grown SiNWs in the 620-950 nm spectral range is a clear indication of the occurrence of quantum confinement. Such a PL emission is in accordance with the TEM results which revealed that the size of nanostructures are indeed below the exciton Bohr radius of silicon.
A combination of the functionalities of carbon nanotube (CNT)-Si hybrid heterojunctions is presented as a novel method to steer the efficiency of the photovoltaic (PV) cell based on these junctions, ...and to increase the selectivity and sensitivity of the chemiresistor gas sensor operated with the p-doped CNT layer. The electrical characteristics of the junctions have been tracked by exposing the devices to oxidizing (NO
) and reducing (NH
) molecules. It is shown that when used as PV cells, the cell efficiency can be reversibly steered by gas adsorption, providing a tool to selectively dope the p-type layer through molecular adsorption. Tracking of the current-voltage curve upon gas exposure also allowed to use these cells as gas sensors with an enhanced sensitivity as compared to that provided by a readout of the electrical signal from the CNT layer alone. In turn, the chemiresistive response was improved, both in terms of selectivity and sensitivity, by operating the system under illumination, as the photo-induced charges at the junction increase the p-doping of CNTs making them more sensitive to NH
and less to NO
.
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