How confinement affects the dynamics of c60 in carbon nanopeapods

Snapshots of the Fragmentation for C70@Single-Walled Carbon Nanotube: Tight-Binding Molecular Dynamics Simulations

In previously reported experimental studies, a yield of double-walled carbon nanotubes (DWCNTs) at C₇₀@Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) is higher than C₆₀@SWCNTs due to the higher sensitivity to photolysis of the former. From the perspective of pyrolysis dynamics, we would like to understand whether C₇₀@SWCNT is more sensitive to thermal decomposition than C₆₀@SWCNT, and the starting point of DWCNT formation, which can be obtained through the decomposition fragmentation of the nanopeapods, which appears in the early stages. We have studied the fragmentation of C₇₀@SWCNT nanopeapods, using molecular dynamics simulations together with the empirical tight-binding total energy calculation method. We got the snapshots of the fragmentation structure of carbon nano-peapods (CNPs) composed of SWCNT and C₇₀ fullerene molecules and the geometric spatial positioning structure of C₇₀ within the SWCNT as a function of dynamics time (for 2 picoseconds) at the temperatures of 4000 K, 5000 K, and 6000 K. In conclusion, the scenario in which C₇₀@SWCNT transforms to a DWCNT would be followed by the fragmentation of C₇₀, after C₇₀, and the SWCNT have been chemically bonding in the early stages. The relative stability of fullerenes in CNPs could be reversed, compared to the ranking of the relative stability of the encapsulated molecules themselves.

Thermodynamics of Linear Carbon Chains

Linear carbon chains (LCCs) are one-dimensional materials with unique properties, including high Debye temperatures and restricted selection rules for phonon interactions. Consequently, their Raman C-band frequency's temperature dependence is a probe to their thermal properties, which are well described within the Debye formalism even at room temperatures. Therefore, with the basis on a semiempirical approach we show how to use the C band to evaluate the LCCs' internal energy, heat capacity, coefficient of thermal expansion, thermal strain, and Grüneisen parameter, providing universal relations for these quantities in terms of the number of carbons atoms and the temperature.

Anharmonicity and Universal Response of Linear Carbon Chain Mechanical Properties under Hydrostatic Pressure

Isolated linear carbon chains (LCCs) encapsulated by multiwalled carbon nanotubes are studied under hydrostatic pressure (P) via resonance Raman scattering. The LCCs' spectroscopic signature C band around 1850  cm^{-1} softens linearly with increasing P. A simple anharmonic force-constant model not only describes such softening but also shows that the LCCs' Young's modulus (E), Grüneisen parameter (γ), and strain (ϵ) follow universal P^{-1} and P^{2} laws, respectively. In particular, γ also presents a unified behavior for all LCCs. To the best of our knowledge, these are the first results reported on such isolated systems and the first work to explore universal P-dependent responses for LCCs' E, ϵ, and γ.

Temperature dependence of the evaporation lengthscale for water confined between two hydrophobic plates

Liquid water in a hydrophobic confinement is the object of high interest in physicochemical sciences. Confined between two macroscopic hydrophobic surfaces, liquid water transforms into vapor if the distance between surfaces is smaller than a critical separation, referred to as the evaporation lengthscale. To investigate the temperature dependence of the evaporation lengthscale of water confined between two hydrophobic parallel plates, we use the combination of the density functional theory (DFT) with the probabilistic hydrogen bond (PHB) model for water-water hydrogen bonding. The PHB model provides an analytic expression for the average number of hydrogen bonds per water molecule as a function of its distance to a hydrophobic surface and its curvature. Knowing this expression, one can implement the effect of hydrogen bonding between water molecules on their interaction with the hydrophobe into DFT, which is then employed to determine the distribution of water molecules between two macroscopic hydrophobic plates at various interplate distances and various temperatures. For water confined between hydrophobic plates, our results suggest the evaporation lengthscale to be of the order of several nanometers and a linearly increasing function of temperature from T=293 K to T=333 K, qualitatively consistent with previous results.

Unravelling the multilayer growth of the fullerene C60 in real time

Molecular semiconductors are increasingly used in devices, but understanding of elementary nanoscopic processes in molecular film growth is in its infancy. Here we use real-time in situ specular and diffuse X-ray scattering in combination with kinetic Monte Carlo simulations to study C60 nucleation and multilayer growth. We determine a self-consistent set of energy parameters describing both intra- and interlayer diffusion processes in C60 growth. This approach yields an effective Ehrlich-Schwoebel barrier of EES=110 meV, diffusion barrier of ED=540 meV and binding energy of EB=130 meV. Analysing the particle-resolved dynamics, we find that the lateral diffusion is similar to colloids, but characterized by an atom-like Schwoebel barrier. Our results contribute to a fundamental understanding of molecular growth processes in a system, which forms an important intermediate case between atoms and colloids.

Electrons for single molecule diffraction and imaging

We demonstrate the potential of electrons for single molecule diffraction and imaging using C₆₀ molecules confined inside single-walled carbon nanotubes (C₆₀s@SWCNT or peapod) as a model system. A 25 nm diameter electron beam from a field emission gun source is used to record diffraction patterns from individual peapods using imaging plates. The electron beam illuminates about 25 C₆₀ molecules. Experimentally, we found that the molecules diffract inside ∼15% of the host nanotubes. With the help of simulations, we explore the limits of electron molecular diffraction and its sensitivity to the molecular configurations. We show that the combination of electron diffraction and electron direct imaging provides the best approach to single molecule imaging.

Symmetry-adapted rotator functions for molecules in cylindrical confinement

We present a general description of the formalism of symmetry-adapted rotator functions (SARFs) for molecules in cylindrical confinement. Molecules are considered as clusters of interaction centers (ICs), can have any symmetry, and can display different types of ICs. Cylindrical confinement can be realized by encapsulation in a carbon nanotube (CNT). The potential energy of a molecule surrounded by a CNT can be calculated by evaluating a limited number of terms of an expansion into SARFs, which offers a significant reduction of the computation time. Optimal molecular orientations can be deduced from the resulting potential energy landscape. Examples, including the case of a molecule with cubic symmetry inside a CNT, are discussed.

Rotational dynamics of confined C60 from near-infrared Raman studies under high pressure

Peapods present a model system for studying the properties of dimensionally constrained crystal structures, whose dynamical properties are very important. We have recently studied the rotational dynamics of C(60) molecules confined inside single walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) by analyzing the intermediate frequency mode lattice vibrations using near-infrared Raman spectroscopy. The rotation of C(60) was tuned to a known state by applying high pressure, at which condition C(60) first forms dimers at low pressure and then forms a single-chain, nonrotating, polymer structure at high pressure. In the latter state the molecules form chains with a 2-fold symmetry. We propose that the C(60) molecules in SWNT exhibit an unusual type of ratcheted rotation due to the interaction between C(60) and SWNT in the "hexagon orientation," and the characteristic vibrations of ratcheted rotation becomes more obvious with decreasing temperature.

Subdiffusion in time-averaged, confined random walks

Certain techniques characterizing diffusive processes, such as single-particle tracking or molecular dynamics simulation, provide time averages rather than ensemble averages. Whereas the ensemble-averaged mean-squared displacement (MSD) of an unbounded continuous time random walk (CTRW) with a broad distribution of waiting times exhibits subdiffusion, the time-averaged MSD, delta2, does not. We demonstrate that, in contrast to the unbounded CTRW, in which delta2 is linear in the lag time Delta, the time-averaged MSD of the CTRW of a walker confined to a finite volume is sublinear in Delta, i.e., for long lag times delta2 approximately Delta1-alpha. The present results permit the application of CTRW to interpret time-averaged experimental quantities.

Dielectric properties of water inside single-walled carbon nanotubes

In this paper, we report novel ferroelectric properties of a new form of ice inside single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs). These are called "ice nanotubes" (ice NTs) and they consist of polygonal water rings stacked one-dimensionally along the SWCNT axis. We performed molecular dynamics (MD) calculations for the ice NTs under an external electric field and in a temperature range between 100 and 350 K. It is revealed that ice NTs show stepwise polarization with a significant hysteresis loop as a function of the external field strength. In particular, pentagonal and heptagonal ice NTs are found to be the world's smallest ferroelectrics with spontaneous polarization of around 1 microC/cm(2). The n-gonal ice NT, where n = 5, 6, or 7, has (n + 1)-polarized structures with different polarizations. These findings suggest potential applications of SWCNTs encapsulating dielectric materials for the fabrication of the smallest ferroelectric devices. Experimental evidence for the presence of ice NTs inside SWCNTs is also discussed in great detail.

Neutron investigations of rotational motions in monolayer and multilayer films at the interface of MgO and graphite surfaces

Recent experimental investigations of the rotational motion of methane and molecular hydrogen using inelastic neutron scattering (INS) measurements in combination with thermodynamic techniques have provided a unique view of the evolution of the interaction of these two molecules with the MgO (100) surface and graphite basal plane. Despite significant differences in the chemical and physical properties and surface symmetry of these two adsorbents, the dynamical behavior of the adsorbed films is remarkably similar. The interaction of a CH4 monolayer solid with MgO and graphite, as monitored by the behavior of the J = 0 --> J = 1 free rotor transition, is so strong that there is no evidence for unhindered rotation of the molecule below 20 K. Using this same transition as a probe, H2 monolayer solids exhibit nearly free or significantly hindered motion on graphite and MgO (100) surfaces, respectively. Investigations of CH4 and H2 multilayer films on MgO find that once the film thickness exceeds approximately 3 layers, the molecule-molecule interactions predominantly determine the dynamical properties of the molecular film furthest from the surface. INS signals indicate that the dynamical motion in thicker films is closely related to that observed in the bulk system. The results of these studies serve as a valuable pathway for developing a qualitatively accurate description of the potential energy surfaces that govern the microscopic properties of these systems.