We have shown that using high pressure we can create a new type of 1-dimensional system. This new carbon polymorphe is obtained from a linear chain of carbon atoms (in red in the top figure) encapsulated inside a double-wall carbon nanotube. At high pressures the nanotube deforms allowing the formation of new bonds between the chain (in blue in the bottom figure) and the nanotube wall (in black). We combined Raman spectroscopy and electron microscopy with density funcional theory (DFT) calculations to put into evidence the transformation. This work is a result of a collaboration with Brazilian, Korean and Japaneese colleagues.

More information:

Effects of pressure on the structural and electronic properties of linear carbon chains encapsulated in double wall carbon nanotubes
Carbon, Volume 133, July 2018, Pages 446-456