Introduction
This talk will explore folds and dislocations in layered materials. 2D-layered materials are at the heart of the nanomaterials revolution and while defects dominate their behaviour, research typically focuses on point defects. However, linear defects like folds and dislocations are common and observed in all layered materials. The intrinsic anisotropy of low dimensional carbon nanoobjects such as graphene opens up possibilities for structural distortion and behavior not available to three-dimensional crystals. Different dislocation orientation results in families of radically different structure types which exploit the available out-of-plane dimension [1,2]. For example folding creates distinct Raman spectroscopic signatures [3] and can lead to local band gap variation in layered materials such as boron nitride [4]. Folded, rolled, distorted and rippled sheets are interesting, not only in themselves, but also for the void spaces they create. There are a number of ways carbon can be used to confine other materials, either modifying bulk behavior or inducing unique low-dimensional change in the materials they are hosting [5]. Examples we will explore in the talk include the formation of new 1D material phases of intercalants such as phosphorus [6].
Figure 1: (top) Experimental image of phosphorus filled single walled carbon nanotube
(bottom) collapsed carbon nanotube with filling of the edge cavities.
References:
[1] M. Heggie et al. J. Nucl. Mater. 2011, 413, 150, doi: 10.1016/j.jnucmat.2011.04.015.
[2] J. McHugh et al. Carbon 2022, 188, 401, doi: 10.1016/j.carbon.2021.11.072.
[3] E. Picheau et al. ACS Nano 2021, 15, 596, doi: 10.1021/acsnano.0c06048.
[4] A. Impellizzeri et al. J. Phys. Chem. C 2022, 126, 17746, doi: 10.1021/acs.jpcc.2c05549.
[5] D. Rybkovskiy et al. Carbon 2018, 142, 123, doi: 10.1016/j.carbon.2018.10.049.
[6] D. Rybkovskiy et al. ACS Nano 2022, 16, 6002, doi: 10.1021/acsnano.1c11349.
[7] Full publication list available with pdf links from https://chrisewels.github.io/ewels.info/