Effective medium theory of the optical properties of aligned carbon nanotubes

TL;DR

This paper develops an effective medium theory using photonic band structure calculations and Maxwell-Garnett approach to analyze the optical properties of aligned carbon nanotube films, emphasizing the importance of electromagnetic coupling.

Contribution

It introduces a comprehensive theoretical framework combining photonic band structure and Maxwell-Garnett models for aligned nanotubes, highlighting the necessity of electromagnetic coupling inclusion.

Findings

Full electromagnetic coupling is essential for accurate modeling.

The developed theory aligns well with experimental data.

Simplified models may overlook critical interactions.

Abstract

We present an effective medium theory in order to analyze the reported optical properties of aligned carbon nanotube films (W.A. de Heer et al., Science 268, 845 (1995)). This methodology is based on photonic band structure calculations and allows treatment of complex media consisting of particles that interact strongly. We also develop a simple Maxwell-Garnett type approach for studying this system. In comparing the results of both mean field theories, we demonstrate that the inclusion of the full electromagnetic coupling between the nanotubes, as our numerical scheme does, is necessary for a complete explanation of the experimental data.