Carbon systems of polymerized nanotubes: Crystal and electronic structures

Molecular dynamic calculations are carried out for the (P, T) phase diagram of a covalent compound of cross-linked carbon single-wall nanotubes (SWNT) and for the structures and electronic spectra of the novel crystals of polymerized carbon nanotubes. It is shown that the transformation of covalently bonded nanotubes in a close-packed conducting structure cardinally modifies their electronic properties. The P-SWNT crystal becomes semiconducting and, upon complete transformation of sp ²-hybridized carbon atoms into sp ³-hybridized ones, it becomes an insulator.