Tight binding simulation study on zigzag single-walled carbon nanotubes

Abstract

Tight binding simulation studies using the density functional tight binding (DFTB) model have been performed on various zigzag single-walled carbon-nanotubes (SWCNTs) to investigate their electronic properties using DFTB module of the Material Studio Software version 7.0. Various combinations of different eigen-solvers and charge mixing schemes available in the DFTB Module have been tried to chalk out the electronic structure. The analytically deduced values of the bandgap of (9, 0) SWCNT were compared with the experimentally determined value reported in the literature. On comparison, it was found that the tight binding approximations tend to drastically underestimate the bandgap values. However, the combination of Anderson charge mixing method with standard eigensolver when implemented using the smart algorithm was found to produce fairly close results. These optimized model parameters were then used to determine the band structures of various zigzag SWCNTs. (9, 0) Single-walled Nanotube which is extensively being used for sensing NH3, CH4 and NO2 has been picked up as a reference material since its experimental bandgap value has been reported in the literature. It has been found to exhibit a finite energy bandgap in contrast to its expected metallic nature. The study is of utmost significance as it not only probes and validates the simulation route for predicting suitable properties of nanomaterials but also throws light on the comparative efficacy of the different approximation and rationalization quantum mechanical techniques used in simulation studies. Such simulation studies if used intelligently prove to be immensely useful to the material scientists as they not only save time and effort but also pave the way to new experiments by making valuable predictions.