Large area films of alternating graphene-carbon nanotube layers processed in water.

We report the preparation of hybrid paperlike films consisting of alternating layers of graphene (or graphene oxide) and different types of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (N-doped MWNTs, B-doped MWNTs, and pristine MWNTs). We used an efficient self-assembly method in which nanotubes were functionalized with cationic polyelectrolytes in order to make them dispersible in water, and subsequently these suspensions were mixed with graphene oxide (GO) suspensions, and the films were formed by casting/evaporation processes. The electronic properties of these films (as produced and thermally reduced) were characterized, and we found electrical resistivities as low as 3 × 10(-4) Ω cm. Furthermore, we observed that these films could be used as electron field emission sources with extraordinary efficiencies; threshold electric field of ca. 0.55 V/µm, ß factor as high as of 15.19 × 10(3), and operating currents up to 220 µA. These values are significantly enhanced when compared to previous reports in the literature for other carbon nanostructured filmlike materials. We believe these hybrid foils could find other applications as scaffolds for tissue regeneration, thermal and conducting papers, and laminate composites with epoxy resins.

Clean nanotube unzipping by abrupt thermal expansion of molecular nitrogen: graphene nanoribbons with atomically smooth edges.

We report a novel physicochemical route to produce highly crystalline nitrogen-doped graphene nanoribbons. The technique consists of an abrupt N(2) gas expansion within the hollow core of nitrogen-doped multiwalled carbon nanotubes (CN(x)-MWNTs) when exposed to a fast thermal shock. The multiwalled nanotube unzipping mechanism is rationalized using molecular dynamics and density functional theory simulations, which highlight the importance of open-ended nanotubes in promoting the efficient introduction of N(2) molecules by capillary action within tubes and surface defects, thus triggering an efficient and atomically smooth unzipping. The so-produced nanoribbons could be few-layered (from graphene bilayer onward) and could exhibit both crystalline zigzag and armchair edges. In contrast to methods developed previously, our technique presents various advantages: (1) the tubes are not heavily oxidized; (2) the method yields sharp atomic edges within the resulting nanoribbons; (3) the technique could be scaled up for the bulk production of crystalline nanoribbons from available MWNT sources; and (4) this route could eventually be used to unzip other types of carbon nanotubes or intercalated layered materials such as BN, MoS(2), WS(2), etc.