Nanotechnology and nanostructured materials: trends in carbon nanotubes

Carbon nanotubes have attracted the attention of many researchers since their discovery last decade. These carbon molecules are tiny tubes with diameters down to 0.4 nm, while their lengths can grow up to a million times their diameter. Using their remarkable electrical properties, simple electronic logic circuits have been built. These structures are promising for the semiconductor industry which is leading the search for miniaturisation. They are not only very good conductors, but they also appear to be the yet found material with the biggest specific stiffness, having half the density of aluminium. This paper is written to give a consolidated view of the synthesis, the properties and applications of carbon nanotubes, with the aim of drawing attention to useful available information and to enhancing interest in this new highly advanced technological field for the researcher and the manufacturing engineer.