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Published online: 5 November 2008 | doi:10.1038/nchina.2008.260

Carbon nanotubes: Domino drive

Tim Reid

Introduction

© (2008) APS

Carbon nanotubes could soon act as energy carriers for tiny devices. Tienchong Chang at Shanghai University¹ has shown that a nanotube squashed at one end can rapidly release its stored energy by collapsing along its length like a row of dominoes. The effect resembles a tube of toothpaste squeezing itself (see image).

The structure of a single-walled carbon nanotube has two possible stable states: circular or collapsed. Chang realized that for nanotubes wider than 3.5 nanometres, the circular state stores more potential energy than the collapsed state as a result of van der Waal's forces. He performed molecular dynamics simulations to find out what would happen if one end of a nanotube was rapidly collapsed by clamping it between two graphene bars.

The calculations showed that when each carbon ring collapses its potential is released as kinetic energy in a wave down the tube, causing more rings to collapse like dominoes. The wave can propagate at over one kilometre per second.

One way to use this released energy is to build 'nanoguns' that could propel molecules, such as C₆₀ buckyballs, at speeds faster than bullets from an AK47. The technology could also have applications in molecular generators, nanofluidics, or even injection mechanisms in medicine.

The authors of this work are from:
Shanghai Institute of Applied Mathematics and Mechanics, Institute of Low Dimensional Carbon and Device Physics, Shanghai University, Shanghai, China.

Reference

1. Chang, T. Dominoes in carbon nanotubes. Phys. Rev. Lett. 101, 175501 (2008).  | Article |