Large and ultrafast third-order optical non-linearity of single-wall carbon nanotubes at 820 nm

Single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) of diameter 1.3 nm have been produced and cut into finite lengths centered at 160 nm. A solution of them in DMF h as been prepared for third-order optical non-linearity measurements using t he femtosecond optical Kerr effect at a wavelength of 820 nm. The ultrafast second-order hyperpolarizability, gamma, of this SWCNT is estimated to be as large as 2.1 X 10(-28) esu. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights re served.