Unusually high dispersion of nitrogen-doped carbon nanotubes in DNA solution

The dispersibility in a DNA solution of bundled multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), having different chemical functional groups on the CNT sidewall, was investigated by optical spectroscopy. We observed that the dispersibility of nitrogen (N)-doped MWCNTs was significantly higher than that of pure MWCNTs and MWCNTs synthesized in the presence of ethanol. This result is supported by the larger amount of adsorbed DNA on N-doped MWCNTs, as well as by the higher binding energy established between nucleobases and the N-doped CNTs. Pure MWCNTs are dispersed in DNA solution via van der Waals and hydrophobic interactions; in contrast, the nitrogenated sites within N-doped MWCNTs provided additional sites for interactions that are important to disperse nanotubes in DNA solutions.