Half metallicity in a zigzag double-walled nanotube nanodot: An ab initio prediction

Ab initio density functional calculations were performed to study finite-length zigzag (7,0) @ (16,0) double-walled carbon nanotubes (DWCNTs) with H-termination at the open ends. We find that such a DWCNT nanodot displays a very large magnetic moment at the zigzag edges and the ground state displays symmetric anti-ferromagnetic coupling. When an external electric field is applied along the direction of tube axis, a gap is opened for one spin channel, whereas another spin channel remains metallic, i.e. half metallicity occurs. Our results suggest an important new avenue for the development of CNT-based spintronic materials with enhanced properties. (C) 2008 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.