Carbon Nanotubes Can "Remember" Their Initial Structure, Isotope Labeling Reveals Dynamic Growth Process
A study released on September 1 shows that carbon nanotubes can maintain their initial atomic structure in dynamically changing growth environments. The research team used digital isotope labeling technology to encode the elongation process of individual carbon nanotubes as sequences of different carbon isotope compositions, and read their growth history through Raman spectroscopy, thereby tracking the structural stability of nanotubes under conditions of temperature variation and catalyst evolution. The properties of carbon nanotubes are highly dependent on their atomic arrangement. The same material may exhibit metallic or semiconducting characteristics due to structural differences, so structural uniformity has always been a key issue for the large-scale application of carbon nanotubes. In floating catalyst chemical vapor deposition and other industrial production routes, catalyst particles experience constantly changing temperatures and gas compositions within the reactor and may undergo irreversible enlargement. Previously, direct evidence was lacking on whether individual carbon nanotubes could maintain their initial structure under such complex conditions.
2026-09-02
