Langmuir-Blodgett films of matrix-diluted single-walled carbon nanotubes

Langmuir-Blodgett films consisting of carbon single-walled nanotubes embedded in a surfactant matrix were prepared. Aqueous dispersions of single-walled nanotubes stabilized by lithium dodecyl sulfate were purified by a centrifugation step. The supernatant was spread onto a subphase containing a positively charged polyelectrolyte. AFM investigations of monolayers transferred onto hydrophobic silicon substrates revealed the presence of homogeneously dispersed single-walled nanotube bundles, as well as individual single-walled nanotubes, both of which are surrounded by micellelike surfactant aggregates.