Adding ionic liquid to nanotube films could build smaller
gadgets, and create more cost effective “Smart Windows” that darken in bright
sun
The atom-sized world of carbon nanotubes holds great promise
for a future demanding smaller and faster electronic components. Nanotubes are
stronger than steel and smaller than any element of silicon-based
electronics—the ubiquitous component of today’s electrical devices—and have better
conductivity, which means they can potentially process information faster while
using less energy.
The challenge has been figuring out how to incorporate all
those great properties into useful electronic devices. A new discovery by four
scientists at the University of California, Riverside has brought us closer to
the goal. They discovered that by adding ionic liquid—a kind of liquid
salt—they can modify the optical transparency of single-walled carbon nanotube
films in a controlled pattern.