Superlattices of HomochIral NanotubES (SHINES) as a platform for Anisotropic Collective Optical Response in the 1D-2D Transdimensional Regime

Objective

By arranging nanoscale building blocks into well-ordered low-dimensional architectures, one can switch on collective effects and unlock optical, electronic, and quantum phenomena absent in the individual units. The SHINES project aims at developing a controlled synthesis route to create such architectures based on single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs), namely planar, anisotropic van der Waals superlattices made of homochiral SWCNTs. These planar superlattices will be one-nanotube-thick and exhibit crystalline-level order along a common axis. By combining catalyst engineering with pre-patterned substrates, we will control the position, alignment, and morphology of the SWCNT superlattices while achieving high yield, advancing beyond state-of-the-art superlattice growth methods that are limited by stochastic factors. This reproducible platform will enable the first systematic exploration of the photophysics of ordered homochiral SWCNT superlattices. Using optical spectroscopy, we will probe anisotropic in-plane exciton drift that emerges when 1D nanotubes are coupled into an effectively 2D lattice, including intermediate 1D→2D regimes. We will also study collective coherent responses arising from inter-nanotube coupling, targeting anisotropic superradiant emission in the near-infrared. Beyond fundamental advances, SHINES will lay the groundwork for polarization-controlled optoelectronic and photonic devices operating in the near-IR, including components within telecom bands and atmospheric transmission windows. Beyond the project, the synthesis approach developed here will deliver a platform for testing further phenomena predicted for SWCNT superlattices, such as hyperbolic dispersion, negative refraction, and surface-enhanced emission of single molecules.