Solvatochromism in single-walled carbon nanotubes

The optical transition energies (E-ii) of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) are influenced by the local environment created by solvents and adsorbed molecules. Analysis of SWCNT photoluminescence (PL) energies in various dielectric media is used to elucidate a semiempirical scaling relation for E-ii shifts and nanotube structural properties from a classical solvatochromic formalism. The SWCNT Kataura plot is corrected for a dielectric constant of unity and used in conjunction with the scaling to accurately describe PL energy shifts in a broad range of dielectric media. (C) 2007 American Institute of Physics.