Interfacial Trapping of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube Bundles

Abstract

A new technique to remove single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) bundles from individual SWNTs in an aqueous suspension is introduced. Fluorescence and absorbance data suggest that liquid−liquid systems preferentially trap nanotube bundles at the interface. The resulting aqueous SWNT suspensions display strong fluorescence indicative of a large population of individually suspended SWNTs. The interfacial trapping process offers a simple route to the large-scale preparation of aqueous SWNT suspensions.