Pressure dependence of Raman modes in double wall carbon nanotubes filled with 1D Tellurium Original Research Article

The preparation of highly anisotropic one-dimensional (1D) structures confined into carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in general is a key objective in nanoscience. In this work, capillary effect was used to fill double wall carbon nanotubes (DWCNTs) with trigonal Tellurium. The samples are characterized by high resolution transmission electronic microscopy and Raman spectroscopy. In order to investigate their structural stability and unravel the differences induced by intershell interactions, unpolarized Raman spectra of radial and tangential modes of DWCNTs filled with 1D nanocrystalline Te excited with 514 nm were studied at room temperature and high pressure. Up to 11 GPa we found a pressure coefficient of 3.7 cm−1 GPa−1 for the internal tube and 7 cm−1 GPa−1 for the external tube. In addition, the tangential band of the external and internal tubes broaden and decrease in amplitude. All findings lead to the conclusion that the outer tube acts as a protection shield for the inner tube (at least up 11 GPa). No pressure-induced structural phase transition was observed in the studied range.