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Metallic Ground State of Functionalized Carbon Nanotubes

Single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) are a fascinating material because they exhibit many outstanding properties. Due to their unique geometric structure, they are a paradigm for one-dimensional systems. Furthermore, depending on their chirality, they can be either metallic or semiconducting. The SWCNT are arranged in bundles of some ten nanotubes with a random distribution of semiconducting and metallic tubes. They are thus one-dimensional objects embedded in a three-dimensional arrangement, the bundles. In this thesis, the metallic ground state of one-dimensional (1D) and three-dimensional (3D) systems is investigated on the basis of SWCNTs, using angle-integrated photoemission spectroscopy. In particular, a transition from a 1D to a 3D metallic system, induced by a charge transfer, is studied on SWCNTs and C60 peapods. In general, the metallic ground state of materials is greatly influenced by correlation effects. In classical three-dimensional metals, electron-electron interaction mainly leads to a renormalization of the charge carrier properties (e.g. effective mass), as described in Landau's Fermi liquid theory. One-dimensional metals are influenced to a greater extent by interactions. In fact, the Landau-quasiparticle picture breaks down due to the Peierls instability. Instead, one-dimensional metals are described by Tomonaga-Luttinger liquid (TLL) theory which predicts unusual properties such as spin-charge separation and non-universal power laws in some physical properties such as the electronic density of states (DOS). Angle-integrated photoemission spectroscopy provides direct access to the DOS and as such directly addresses the power law renormalization of a TLL. It is first shown, that the bundles of single-wall carbon nanotubes indeed exhibit a power law scaling of the electronic density of states is observed as it is expected from TLL theory. The main part of the thesis is devoted to the investigation of the metallic ground state of SWCNTs upon functionalization. In general, functionalization is a controlled modification of the structural and/or electronic properties of SWCNT. It can be carried out e.g. by doping with electron donors or acceptors, by filling the nanospace inside the tubes with molecules or by substituting carbon atoms. First, the behavior of the SWCNT upon chemical doping was probed. The overall modification of the electronic band structure can be explained well by a rigid band shift model. The one-dimensional character of the metallic tubes in the bundle is retained at low doping, but when the semiconducting tubes in the sample are also rendered metallic by the charge transfer, a Fermi edge emerges out of the power law renormalization of the spectral weight, signifying a transition to a three-dimensional metallic behavior. This can be explained by an increased interaction between the tubes in the bundle. A crossover from a Tomonaga-Luttinger liquid to a Fermi liquid is observed. The filling of SWCNTs with C60 molecules leads to the formation of so-called peapods. It raises questions concerning the role of the additional bands originating from the C60 filling in the one-dimensional system. In the pristine state, the states of the C60 filling were found to have no influence on the metallic ground state. The TLL power law scaling of the density of states is observed. The overall interaction between the SWCNT host and the C60 filling is small. Upon doping however, the modified band structure leads to a qualitative change in the crossover from a TLL to a Fermi liquid. Upon doping, also states in the conduction band of the C60 are filled. The evolution of the power law scaling at intermediate doping can be interpreted as an opening of an additional conduction channel of one-dimensional metallic chains of C60 inside the tubes. This is in good agreement with transport experiments. Upon further doping, a Fermi edge similar to the highly doped SWCNTs is observed.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:DRESDEN/oai:qucosa.de:swb:14-1184153423397-79783
Date11 July 2007
CreatorsRauf, Hendrik
ContributorsTechnische Universität Dresden, Physik, Prof. Bernd Büchner, Prof. Bernd Büchner, Prof. Hans Kuzmany, Prof. Mark S. Golden
PublisherSaechsische Landesbibliothek- Staats- und Universitaetsbibliothek Dresden
Source SetsHochschulschriftenserver (HSSS) der SLUB Dresden
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
Typedoc-type:doctoralThesis
Formatapplication/pdf

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