A sensing mechanism for the detection of carbon nanotubes using selective photoluminescent probes based on ionic complexes with organic dyes.

ABSTRACT: The multifunctional properties of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) make them a powerful platform for unprecedented innovations in a variety of practical applications. As a result of the surging growth of nanotechnology, nanotubes present a potential problem as an environmental pollutant, and as such, an efficient method for their rapid detection must be established. Here, we propose a novel type of ionic sensor complex for detecting CNTs - an organic dye that responds sensitively and selectively to CNTs with a photoluminescent signal. The complexes are formed through Coulomb attractions between dye molecules with uncompensated charges and CNTs covered with an ionic surfactant in water. We demonstrate that the photoluminescent excitation of the dye can be transferred to the nanotubes, resulting in s

SUBMITTER: Lutsyk P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6062430 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature