Multichannel Ballistic Transport in Multiwall Carbon Nanotubes

H. J. Li, W. G. Lu, J. J. Li, X. D. Bai, and C. Z. Gu

Phys. Rev. Lett. 95, 086601 – Published 15 August 2005

Abstract

The electric transport properties of an individual vertical multiwall carbon nanotube (MWCNT) were studied in situ at room temperature in a scanning electron microscope chamber. It was found that the single MWCNT has a large current-carrying capacity, and the maximum current can reach 7.27 mA. At the same time, a very low resistance of about $34.4 Ω$ and a high conductance of about $(460 - 490) G_{0}$ were obtained. The experimental observations imply a multichannel quasiballistic conducting behavior occurring in the MWCNTs with large diameter, which can be attributed to the participation of multiple walls in electrical transport and the large diameter of the MWCNTs.