Mechanical and electrical properties of carbon tubule nanocoils

Carbon tubule nanocoils have been synthesized in high yield by catalytic thermal chemical vapor deposition. A carbon nanocoil generally consists of two tubules which have the same pitch, twist with each other and are partially crystallized. The mechanical and electrical properties of carbon nanocoils have been studied by a manipulator-equipped scanning electron microscope. It is found that the carbon nanocoils have the conductivity of 100-180 S/cm and Young modulus of 0.1 TPa. These results suggest that carbon nanocoils have good conductivity and mechanical strength, which enable them to be applied to nanosized electronic and/or mechanical devices. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.