Single carbon nanotube optical spectroscopy

This Minireview discusses novel insights into the electronic structure of carbon nanotubes obtained using single-molecule fluorescence spectroscopy. Fluorescence spectra from single nanotubes are well described by a single, Lorentzian lineshape. Nanotubes with identical structures fluoresce with different energies due to local electronic perturbations. Carbon nanotube fluorescence unexpectedly does not show any intensity or spectral fluctuations at 300 K The lack of intensity blinking or bleaching demonstrates that carbon nonotubes have the potential to provide a stable, single-molecule infrared photon source, allowing for the exciting possibility of applications in quantum optics and biophotonics.