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Spectra of Radiation Emitted from Open-Ended and Closed Carbon Nanotubes Exposed to Microwave Fields

We performed experiments in which both open-ended and closed carbon nanotubes were exposed to 2.46 GHz microwaves over the course of several irradiation and cooling cycles at a pressure of ~10-6 torr. The spectra of the radiation emitted from the nanotubes indicate that the intensity of the emitted radiation with wavelengths of 650-1000 nm increased during the irradiation cycles. However, the intensity of the radiation emitted from untreated nanotubes increased substantially more than the intensity of the radiation emitted from nanotubes that had been chemically treated in order to open nanotube ends. As open-ended nanotubes have a lower work function than closed nanotubes, and as nanotube ends are known to open as they are heated, our results suggest that the mechanism responsible for the emission of infrared, visible, and ultra-violet radiation from carbon nanotubes exposed to microwaves is field emission-induced luminescence.