Aqueous two-phase extraction of semiconducting single-wall carbon nanotubes with isomaltodextrin and thin-film transistor applications

Abstract

Semiconducting single-wall carbon nanotubes (s-SWCNTs) are promising materials with potential applications in thin-film transistors (TFTs). However, separation techniques are required to obtain highly enriched s-SWCNTs since conventional as-grown SWCNTs are a mixture of 70% semiconducting and 30% metallic SWCNTs. Here, we developed a rapid single-step aqueous two-phase extraction of high-purity s-SWCNTs using isomaltodextrin, which is a cost-effective polysaccharide that contains a large amount of α-1,6-glucosidic linkages. We also succeeded in fabricating high-density uniform films directly from the high-purity s-SWCNT extract. Fabricated TFTs exhibited an excellent on/off ratio, carrier mobility, and on-current density.