Carbon nanotube–glass composite with high dielectric constant and low dielectric loss for energy storage device applications

Abstract

Single walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNT) have been embedded as electrically conductive filler inside a borosilicate glass matrix to fabricate SWCNT–glass composites with enriched dielectric properties. The composite shows significantly increased dielectric constant (ε’) at room temperature which is 103 times higher than that of the base glass. Dielectric loss of the SWCNT–glass composite is also observed to be relatively low especially at higher frequencies. In correlation with the morphology, high dielectric constant of the composite is explained by the formation of microcapacitor networks of the carbon nanotubes and Maxwell–Wagner–Sillars polarization at nanotube/glass interface.