High-energy phonon branches of an individual metallic carbon nanotube

Growth and Characterization of Carbon Nanofibers Grown on Vertically Aligned InAs Nanowires via Chemical Vapour Deposition

The integration of carbon nanostructures with semiconductor nanowires holds significant potential for energy-efficient integrated circuits. However, achieving precise control over the positioning and stability of these interconnections poses a major challenge. This study presents a method for the controlled growth of carbon nanofibers (CNFs) on vertically aligned indium arsenide (InAs) nanowires. The CNF/InAs hybrid structures, synthesized using chemical vapor deposition (CVD), were successfully produced without compromising the morphology of the pristine nanowires. Under optimized conditions, preferential growth of the carbon nanofibers in the direction perpendicular to the InAs nanowires was observed. Moreover, when the CVD process employed iron as a catalyst, an increased growth rate was achieved. With and without the presence of iron, carbon nanofibers nucleate preferentially on the top of the InAs nanowires, indicating a tip growth mechanism presumably catalysed by a gold-indium alloy that selectively forms in that region. These results represent a compelling example of controlled interconnections between adjacent InAs nanowires formed by carbon fibers.

Double resonant Raman scattering and valley coherence generation in monolayer WSe_{2}

The electronic states at the direct band gap of monolayer transition metal dichalcogenides such as WSe_{2} at the K^{+} and K^{-} valleys are related by time reversal and may be viewed as pseudospins. The corresponding optical interband transitions are governed by robust excitons. Excitation with linearly polarized light yields the coherent superposition of exciton pseudospin states, referred to as coherent valley states. Here, we uncover how and why valley coherence can be generated efficiently. In double resonant Raman spectroscopy, we show that the optically generated 2s exciton state differs from the 1s state by exactly the energy of the combination of several prominent phonons. Superimposed on the exciton photoluminescence (PL), we observe the double resonant Raman signal. This spectrally narrow peak shifts with the excitation laser energy as incoming photons match the 2s and outgoing photons the 1s exciton transition. The multiphonon resonance has important consequences: following linearly polarized excitation of the 2s exciton, a superposition of valley states is efficiently transferred from the 2s to 1s state. This explains the high degree of valley coherence measured for the 1s exciton PL.

Studying the local character of Raman features of single-walled carbon nanotubes along a bundle using TERS

Here, we show that the Raman intensity of the G-mode in tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (TERS) is strongly dependent on the height of the bundle. Moreover, using TERS we are able to position different single-walled carbon nanotubes along a bundle, by correlating the observed radial breathing mode (RBM) with the AFM topography at the measuring point. The frequency of the G- mode behaves differently in TERS as compared to far-field Raman. Using the RBM frequency, the diameters of the tubes were calculated and a very good agreement with the G--mode frequency was observed.

Defect characterization in graphene and carbon nanotubes using Raman spectroscopy

This review discusses advances that have been made in the study of defect-induced double-resonance processes in nanographite, graphene and carbon nanotubes, mostly coming from combining Raman spectroscopic experiments with microscopy studies and from the development of new theoretical models. The disorder-induced peak frequencies and intensities are discussed, with particular emphasis given to how the disorder-induced features evolve with increasing amounts of disorder. We address here two systems, ion-bombarded graphene and nanographite, where disorder is represented by point defects and boundaries, respectively. Raman spectroscopy is used to study the 'atomic structure' of the defect, making it possible, for example, to distinguish between zigzag and armchair edges, based on selection rules of phonon scattering. Finally, a different concept is discussed, involving the effect that defects have on the lineshape of Raman-allowed peaks, owing to local electron and phonon energy renormalization. Such effects can be observed by near-field optical measurements on the G' feature for doped single-walled carbon nanotubes.

Defects in individual semiconducting single wall carbon nanotubes: Raman spectroscopic and in situ Raman spectroelectrochemical study

Raman spectroscopy and in situ Raman spectroelectrochemistry have been used to study the influence of defects on the Raman spectra of semiconducting individual single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs). The defects were created intentionally on part of an originally defect-free individual semiconducting nanotube, which allowed us to analyze how defects influence this particular nanotube. The formation of defects was followed by Raman spectroscopy that showed D band intensity coming from the defective part and no D band intensity coming from the original part of the same nanotube. It is shown that the presence of defects also reduces the intensity of the symmetry-allowed Raman features. Furthermore, the changes to the Raman resonance window upon the introduction of defects are analyzed. It is demonstrated that defects lead to both a broadening of the Raman resonance profile and a decrease in the maximum intensity of the resonance profile. The in situ Raman spectroelectrochemical data show a doping dependence of the Raman features taken from the defective part of the tested SWCNT.

An in situ Raman spectroscopy study of stress transfer between carbon nanotubes and polymer

The transfer mechanism of applied stress in single-wall carbon nanotube (SWCNT)/poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) nanocomposites was investigated using in situ Raman spectroscopy on composite fibers. These SWCNT/PMMA nanocomposite fibers have no specific SWCNT-polymer interactions and the high degree of nanotube alignment minimizes the contributions from nanotube-nanotube interactions. Although tensile testing found significantly improved overall mechanical properties of the fibers, effective stress transfer to SWCNTs is limited to a small strain regime (epsilon<0.2%). At higher strains, the stress on the SWCNTs decreases due to the slippage at the nanotube-polymer interface. Slippage was also evident in scanning electron micrographs of fracture surfaces produced by tensile testing of the composite fibers. Above epsilon = 0.2%, the strain-induced slippage was accompanied by irreversible responses in stress and Raman peak shifts. This paper shows that efficient stress transfer to nanotubes as monitored by Raman spectroscopy is crucial to improving the mechanical properties of polymer nanocomposites and to detecting internal damage in nanocomposites.

Symmetry breaking of graphene monolayers by molecular decoration

Aromatic molecules can effectively exfoliate graphite into graphene monolayers, and the resulting graphene monolayers sandwiched by the aromatic molecules exhibit a pronounced Raman G-band splitting, similar to that observed in single-walled carbon nanotubes. Raman measurements and calculations based on the force-constant model demonstrate that the absorbed aromatic molecules are responsible for the G-band splitting by removing the energy degeneracy of in-plane longitudinal and transverse optical phonons at the Gamma point.

Longitudinal optical phonons in metallic and semiconducting carbon nanotubes

We analyze the high-energy Raman modes, G+ and G-, in a pair of one metallic and one semiconducting nanotubes. By combining Rayleigh scattering with Raman resonance profiles of the radial breathing mode and the high-energy modes, we show that the observed G- and G+ peaks can originate from longitudinal optical phonons of different tubes. The G- peak is the longitudinal mode of the metallic tube; it is broadened and downshifted due to strong electron-phonon coupling in the metallic nanotube. The G+ peak is due to the longitudinal mode in the semiconducting tube. This result resolves an ongoing debate in the literature.

Variable electron-phonon coupling in isolated metallic carbon nanotubes observed by Raman scattering

We report the existence of broad and weakly asymmetric features in the high-energy (G) Raman modes of freely suspended metallic carbon nanotubes of defined chiral index. A significant variation in peak width (from 12 cm(-1) to 110 cm(-1)) is observed as a function of the nanotube's chiral structure. When the nanotubes are electrostatically gated, the peak widths decrease. The broadness of the Raman features is understood as the consequence of coupling of the phonon to electron-hole pairs, the strength of which varies with the nanotube chiral index and the position of the Fermi energy.

Fano lineshape and phonon softening in single isolated metallic carbon nanotubes

Evolution of G-band modes of single metallic carbon nanotubes with the Fermi level shift is examined by simultaneous Raman and electron transport studies. Narrow Lorentzian line shape and upshifted frequencies are observed near the van Hove singularities. However, all G modes soften and broaden at the band crossing point. The concurrent appearance of an asymmetric Fano line shape at this point indicates that phonon-continuum coupling is intrinsic to single metallic tubes. The apparent Lorentzian line shapes of as-synthesized metallic tubes are induced by O2 adsorption causing the Fermi level shift.

Raman scattering from high-frequency phonons in supported n-graphene layer films

Results of room-temperature Raman scattering studies of ultrathin graphitic films supported on Si (100)/SiO2 substrates are reported. The results are significantly different from those known for graphite. Spectra were collected using 514.5 nm radiation on films containing from n = 1 to 20 graphene layers, as determined by atomic force microscopy. Both the first- and second-order Raman spectra show unique signatures of the number of layers in the film. The nGL film analogue of the Raman G-band in graphite exhibits a Lorentzian line shape whose center frequency shifts linearly relative to graphite as approximately 1/n (for n = 1 omegaG approximately 1587 cm-1). Three weak bands, identified with disorder-induced first-order scattering, are observed at approximately 1350, 1450, and 1500 cm-1. The approximately 1500 cm-1 band is weak but relatively sharp and exhibits an interesting n-dependence. In general, the intensity of these D-bands decreases dramatically with increasing n. Three second-order bands are also observed (approximately 2450, approximately 2700, and 3248 cm-1). They are analogues to those observed in graphite. However, the approximately 2700 cm-1 band exhibits an interesting and dramatic change of shape with n. Interestingly, for n < 5 this second-order band is more intense than the G-band.

On the electron-phonon coupling of individual single-walled carbon nanotubes

We show that the phonon coupling to the electronic system in individual metallic single-walled carbon nanotubes is not due to coupling to low-energy plasmons. The evidence stems from the measured Raman-Stokes G-mode, which for metallic and semiconducting tubes could be fitted well by the superposition of only two Lorentzian lines associated with vibrational modes along the nanotube axis and the nanotube circumference. In the case of metallic tubes the lower-energy G mode is significantly broadened, however maintaining the Lorentzian line shape, in contrast to the theoretically expected asymmetric Breit-Wigner-Fano line shape from phonon-plasmon coupling. The results were obtained by studying 25 individual metallic and semiconducting single-walled carbon nanotubes with atomic force microscopy, electron transport measurements, and resonant Raman spectroscopy.

Vanishing of the Breit-Wigner-Fano component in individual single-wall carbon nanotubes

In order to decide definitely on the dependence of the intensity of the Breit-Wigner-Fano (BWF) component with the size of the bundle, we have measured the radial breathing modes and tangential modes (TMs) of well defined metallic individual single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and individual SWCNT bundles. In this aim, a complete procedure including the preparation of the substrates, the sample preparation, atomic-force-microscopy imaging and Raman spectroscopy has been developed. From this procedure, we show unambiguously that the BWF component vanishes in isolated metallic SWCNTs. In other words, the observation of a BWF component in the TM bunch is an intrinsic feature of the metallic SWCNT bundle.

Raman spectroscopy of graphite

We present a review of the Raman spectra of graphite from an experimental and theoretical point of view. The disorder-induced Raman bands in this material have been a puzzling Raman problem for almost 30 years. Double-resonant Raman scattering explains their origin as well as the excitation-energy dependence, the overtone spectrum and the difference between Stokes and anti-Stokes scattering. We develop the symmetry-imposed selection rules for double-resonant Raman scattering in graphite and point out misassignments in previously published works. An excellent agreement is found between the graphite phonon dispersion from double-resonant Raman scattering and other experimental methods.

Resonant Raman spectroscopy of nanotubes

Single and double resonances in Raman scattering are introduced and six criteria for the observation and identification of double resonances stated. The experimental situation in carbon nanotubes is reviewed in view of these criteria. The evidence for the D mode and the high-energy mode is found to be overwhelming for a double-resonance process to take place, whereas the nature of the radial breathing-mode Raman process remains undecided at this point. Consequences for the application of Raman scattering to the characterization of nanotubes are discussed.

Phonon dispersion in graphite

We measured the dispersion of the graphite optical phonons in the in-plane Brillouin zone by inelastic x-ray scattering. The longitudinal and transverse optical branches cross along the Gamma-K as well as the Gamma-M direction. The dispersion of the optical phonons was, in general, stronger than expected from the literature. At the K point the transverse optical mode has a minimum and is only approximately 70 cm(-1) higher in frequency than the longitudinal mode. We show that first-principles calculations describe very well the vibrational properties of graphene once the long-range character of the dynamical matrix is taken into account.