Conjugated polymers and carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are important constituents of modern functional hybrid materials. Their utilization as photoactive layers in organic solar cells requires better understanding of the relation between the structure and composition of the hybrids and their photovoltaic efficiency. While fullerenes‐conjugated polymer hybrids have been intensively studied over the last two decades, far less is known about the linkage between processing conditions, interfacial interactions, self‐assembled structures and functionality in CNT‐conjugated polymers composites. This article reviews some of the studies carried over the last decade and highlights the challenges in both fundamental understanding and technological manipulation of these materials. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

No abstract

No abstract

The tendency of single wall carbon nanotubes to organize into crystalline ropes and the aggregation of the ropes into tangled networks act as an obstacle for most applications, and diminishes the special properties of the individual tubes. We describe a procedure for dispersing as-produced nanotube powder in aqueous solutions of Gum Arabic. Dispersion results in spontaneous exfoliation of nanotubes ropes into individual tubes, as demonstrated via x-ray scattering and electron microscopy.