The structure of near-spherical carbon nano-shells

The empty, near-spherical, carbon nanoshells, frequently observed in prepar ations of carbon nanotubes, have been studied using nanodiffraction with el ectron probes of diameter 1 nm or less, formed in a scanning transmission e lectron microscope, and STEM imaging. For the larger nanoshells, it is show n that the shell walls are made up of flat regions composed of successive l ayers of well-ordered graphitic structure, about 5 or 10 nm thick and mutua lly rotated about their common c-axis direction. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.