Nanotubes for particle channeling, radiation and electron sources

Abstract

Carbon nanotubes consist in graphene sheets rolled into seamless hollow cylinders with diameters ranging from 1nm to about 50nm. They have been produced as both single walled and multiwalled nanotubes. The diameter of the MWNTs typically ranges from 10 to 50nm, while the length exceeds 10μm. For SWNTs, the diameter is only 1nm and the length is up to 100μm. Nanotubes exhibit unique physical and chemical properties as being a quasi-one dimensional material.The main involvements of the INFN-LNF group in channeling researches are described, i.e. channeling of high energy beams in nanotubes (with the synthesis and characterization of the ordered nanotube samples), crystal extraction and collimation at IHEP (with the design and production of the bent crystals), crystal undulator R&D (with the characterization of the crystal undulator prototypes with SEM and the positron beam). We consider a precise determination of the optimal experimental conditions for channeling of accelerated particles (protons, positrons, photons, neutrons) through micro and nanostructured crystals and films of aligned nanotubes, as promising candidates for producing highly focused beams.