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Optical Gap Measurements on Individual Boron Nitride Nanotubes by Electron Energy Loss Spectroscopy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 May 2008

Raul Arenal ,
Odile Stéphan ,
Mathieu Kociak ,
Dario Taverna ,
Annick Loiseau  and
Christian Colliex
Raul Arenal*
Affiliation:
Laboratoire d'Etude des Microstructures, ONERA-CNRS UMR 104, 92322 Châtillon, France
Odile Stéphan
Affiliation:
Laboratoire de Physique des Solides, UMR CNRS 8502, Université Paris-Sud, 91405 Orsay, France
Mathieu Kociak
Affiliation:
Laboratoire de Physique des Solides, UMR CNRS 8502, Université Paris-Sud, 91405 Orsay, France
Dario Taverna
Affiliation:
Laboratoire de Physique des Solides, UMR CNRS 8502, Université Paris-Sud, 91405 Orsay, France Université Paris VI, Paris, France
Annick Loiseau
Affiliation:
Laboratoire d'Etude des Microstructures, ONERA-CNRS UMR 104, 92322 Châtillon, France
Christian Colliex
Affiliation:
Laboratoire de Physique des Solides, UMR CNRS 8502, Université Paris-Sud, 91405 Orsay, France
*
Corresponding author. E-mail: [email protected]
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Abstract

Electromagnetic response of individual boron nitride nanotubes (BNNTs) has been studied by spatially resolved electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS). We demonstrate how dedicated EELS methods using subnanometer electron probes permit the analysis of local dielectric properties of a material on a nanometer scale. The continuum dielectric model has been used to analyze the low-loss EEL spectra recorded from these tubes. Using this model, we demonstrate the weak influence of the out-of-plane contribution to the dielectric response of BNNTs. The optical gap, which can be deduced from the measurements, is found to be equal to 5.8 ± 0.2 eV, which is close to that of the hexagonal boron nitride. This value is found to be independent of the nanotubes configuration (diameter, helicity, number of walls, and interaction between the different walls).

Keywords

electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS)low lossoptical gapboron nitridenanotubes
Type
Materials Applications
Information
Microscopy and Microanalysis , Volume 14 , Issue 3 , June 2008 , pp. 274 - 282
Copyright
Copyright © Microscopy Society of America 2008

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