Carbon Nanotube Initiated Formation of Carbon Nanoscrolls

TL;DR

This study uses molecular dynamics simulations to demonstrate how carbon nanotubes can initiate the formation of carbon nanoscrolls from graphene, providing insights into a potential fabrication method for these nanostructures.

Contribution

It introduces a new simulation-based approach showing how CNTs can trigger CNS formation, offering a quantitative phase diagram for fabrication guidance.

Findings

CNSs can form spontaneously from graphene on a substrate.

The formation process is influenced by CNT size, adhesion, and substrate interaction.

A phase diagram guides feasible CNS fabrication conditions.

Abstract

The unique topology and exceptional properties of carbon nanoscrolls (CNSs) have inspired unconventional nano-device concepts, yet the fabrication of CNSs remains rather challenging. Using molecular dynamics simulations, we demonstrate the spontaneous formation of a CNS from graphene on a substrate, initiated by a carbon nanotube (CNT). The rolling of graphene into a CNS is modulated by the CNT size, the carbon-carbon interlayer adhesion, and the graphene-substrate interaction. A phase diagram emerging from the simulations can offer quantitative guideline toward a feasible and robust physical approach to fabricating CNSs.