Electronic properties of intercalated single-wall carbon nanotubes and C60 peapods

Abstract

This paper reviews recent investigations of the electronic structure and the optical properties of intercalated single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and C60 filled SWCNTs (peapods) using electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) in transmission as a probe. The results from these one-dimensional nanostructures are compared to C60 fullerides and intercalated graphite, which are well understood prototypes of carbon-based intercalation compounds. In detail, the structural changes were analysed by electron diffraction and the doping level and the matrix element weighted unoccupied density of states (DOS) by an analysis of the C 1s core-level excitations. Regarding the optical properties, the intercalation gives rise to a charge transfer to the peapods (SWCNTs) which leads to the formation of a free charge carrier plasmon in the loss function which is analysed within the framework of an effective Drude–Lorentz model.