First-principles study on electron transport through BN-dimer embedded zigzag carbon nanotubes

Abstract

First-principles calculations are performed for electron transmission through a metallic zigzag carbon nanotube with substitutional BN dimers parallel to the nanotube axis. The transmission coefficient is calculated in the energy range (around the charge neutrality point) in which there exist two degenerate subbands for each spin. Wave functions in the circumferential direction of one of the degenerate subbands can be chosen so as to have nodes at the position of a carbon dimer parallel to the nanotube axis. It is shown that the transmission probability of an incident wave with such wave-function nodes depends crucially on positions of BN dimers relative to the nodes. By placing each of dimers at one of the nodes, the transmission probability is substantially enhanced and is well described by the Born approximation in spite of spatially extended scattering potential due to ionized B and N. This suggests that the arrangement in the circumferential direction of various impurities influences transport through metallic zigzag carbon nanotubes.