Photoluminescence Properties of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes Influenced by the Tether Length of Reagents with Two...

The functionalization of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) is an effective method for controlling a local band gap, resulting in photoluminescence (PL) in the near-infrared region. Herein, SWNTs were functionalized using a series of bromoalkanes and dibromoalkanes to evaluate the effects of their length on the nanotube PL properties. When bromoalkanes (C_n H_2n+1 Br) or dibromoalkanes (C_n H_2n Br₂ ) with tether lengths of six or more were utilized for six different semiconducting SWNTs, the obtained SWNT adducts exhibited two new PL peaks, whereas dibromoalkanes with tether lengths of 3-5 (C_n H_2n Br₂ : n=3-5) produced single peaks. Combined with theoretical calculations, the results suggested that the tether length of reagents changes the formation mechanism of functionalized adducts, that is, C_n H_2n Br₂ (n=3-5) tends to result in kinetic products.