Reference Terms
from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Carbon nanotube
Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are an allotrope of carbon. They take the form of cylindrical carbon molecules and have novel properties that make them potentially useful in a wide variety of applications in nanotechnology, electronics, optics and other fields of materials science. They exhibit extraordinary strength and unique electrical properties, and are efficient conductors of heat. Inorganic nanotubes have also been synthesized.
Nanotubes are members of the fullerene structural family, which also includes buckyballs. Whereas buckyballs are spherical in shape, a nanotube is cylindrical, with at least one end typically capped with a hemisphere of the buckyball structure. Their name is derived from their size, since the diameter of a nanotube is on the order of a few nanometers (approximately 50,000 times smaller than the width of a human hair), while they can be up to several millimeters in length. There are two main types of nanotubes: single-walled nanotubes (SWNTs) and multi-walled nanotubes (MWNTs).
Related Stories
1
2
Matter & Energy News
March 10, 2026
Mar. 9, 2026 Scientists have found a way to significantly boost “blue energy,” which generates electricity from the mixing of saltwater and freshwater. By coating nanopores with lipid molecules that create a friction-reducing water layer, they enabled ions ...
Mar. 8, 2026 Engineers have discovered an unexpected link between two very different realms of physics: the behavior of electrons in graphene and magnetic waves in specially engineered materials. By designing a thin magnetic film with a hexagonal pattern of ...
Mar. 7, 2026 Solid-state batteries could be safer and more energy-dense than today’s lithium-ion technology, but finding materials that allow ions to move quickly through solid electrolytes has been difficult. ...
Mar. 7, 2026 A team of physicists has experimentally confirmed a long-predicted sequence of exotic magnetic phases in an atomically thin material. When cooled, the material forms tiny magnetic vortices before transitioning into a second ordered magnetic ...
Mar. 4, 2026 A new ultrathin photodetector from Duke University can sense light across the entire electromagnetic spectrum and generate a signal in just 125 picoseconds, making it the fastest pyroelectric detector ever built. The breakthrough could power ...
Mar. 4, 2026 Scientists at the University of Tokyo have captured something never seen before: a frame-by-frame view of how electron spins flip inside an antiferromagnet, a material once thought to be magnetically “invisible.” By firing ultrafast electrical ...
Mar. 3, 2026 Researchers at the University of Basel and the ETH in Zurich have succeeded in changing the polarity of a special ferromagnet using a laser beam. In the future, this method could be used to create adaptable electronic circuits with ...
Mar. 3, 2026 Fusion energy may be one of the most promising clean power sources of the future—but only if scientists can precisely measure the extreme, fast-moving plasmas that make it possible. A new U.S. Department of Energy–sponsored report urges major ...
Mar. 2, 2026 Twisting atomically thin magnetic layers does more than reshape their electronics—it can create giant, topological magnetic textures. In chromium triiodide, researchers observed skyrmion-like patterns stretching far beyond the expected moiré ...
Mar. 2, 2026 NYU researchers have found a way to use light to control how microscopic particles assemble into crystals, effectively turning illumination into a tool for shaping matter. By adding light-sensitive molecules to a liquid filled with tiny particles, ...
Mar. 1, 2026 Inverted perovskite solar cells offer strong potential for scalable, low-cost solar power, but a hidden interface inside the device has limited their performance and durability. Researchers have now introduced crystal-solvate nanoseeds that guide ...
Mar. 1, 2026 Scientists have pulled off a feat long considered out of reach: getting light to mimic the famous quantum Hall effect. In their experiment, photons drift sideways in perfectly defined, quantized steps—just like electrons do in powerful magnetic ...
Latest Headlines
updated 12:56 pm ET
Mar. 10, 2026 Cosmic voids may seem like the emptiest places in the universe, stripped of matter, radiation, and even dark matter. But they’re far from nothing. Even in these vast empty regions, the fundamental ...
Mar. 9, 2026 Physicists have long struggled to unite quantum mechanics—the theory governing tiny particles—with Einstein’s theory of gravity, which explains the behavior of stars, planets, and the structure ...
Mar. 8, 2026 Physicists have discovered a surprising new “Island of Inversion” in a place no one expected: among nuclei where the number of protons equals the ...
Mar. 7, 2026 Gravity may seem constant, but it actually varies across the planet—and one of the strangest places is Antarctica, where gravity is slightly weaker than expected. Scientists have traced this ...
Mar. 6, 2026 Electrons in solar materials can be launched across molecules almost as fast as nature allows, thanks to tiny atomic vibrations acting like a “molecular catapult.” In experiments lasting just 18 ...
Mar. 3, 2026 An international team combining two major neutrino experiments has uncovered stronger evidence that neutrinos and antimatter don’t behave as perfect mirror images. That subtle difference may hold ...
Feb. 28, 2026 Scientists racing to tackle plastic pollution have created a surprising new contender: a biodegradable packaging film made partly from milk protein. Researchers at Flinders University blended calcium ...
Feb. 27, 2026 Researchers at Nagoya University have created a more efficient iron-based photocatalyst that could reduce the need for rare and expensive metals in advanced chemistry. Unlike earlier designs, the new ...
Feb. 27, 2026 Scientists have unveiled a breakthrough way to turn natural gas—long burned as fuel—into valuable chemical building blocks for medicines and other high-demand products. By designing a clever ...
Feb. 27, 2026 Engineers at UC Davis have built a remarkable device that creates power at night by tapping into something we rarely think about: the vast cold of outer space. Using a special type of Stirling ...