Michigan Technological University
Department of Physics

is pleased to announce a colloquium

with

Haiying Liu

Department of Chemistry
Michigan Technological University

Noncovalent Engineering of Carbon Nanotube Surfaces by Rigid, Functional Conjugated Polymers

A new nonwrapping approach to noncovalent engineering of carbon nanotube surfaces is
presented. Rigid functional conjugated polymers, poly(aryleneethynylene)s are used
to solubilize single wall carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) while preserving nearly all of
the nanotube's intrinsic properties via strong - interaction between polymer
backbone and nanotube surface. The method enhances a 100-fold solubility of SWNTs
than polymer wrapping and enables the introduction of various neutral and ionic
functional groups onto the carbon nanotube surface to solubilize SWNTs in different
solvents such as chloroform, NMP, DMF, DMSO and water.

Thursday, November 20, 2003

4:00 p.m., Fisher 139

Refreshments will be served

MTU | Physics | Colloquium