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Letter

Nature Physics 2, 515–520 (1 August 2006) | doi:10.1038/nphys345

Real-time observation of nonlinear coherent phonon dynamics in single-walled carbon nanotubes

A. Gambetta , C. Manzoni , E. Menna , M. Meneghetti , G. Cerullo , G. Lanzani , S. Tretiak , A. Piryatinski , A. Saxena , R. L. Martin & A. R. Bishop

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) are |[pi]|-conjugated, quasi-one-dimensional structures consisting of rolled-up graphene sheets that, depending on their chirality, behave as semiconductors or metals; owing to their unique properties, they enable groundbreaking applications in mechanics, nanoelectronics and photonics. In semiconducting SWNTs, medium-sized excitons (3–5|[thinsp]|nm) with large binding energy and oscillator strength are the fundamental excitations; exciton wavefunction localization and one-dimensionality give rise to a strong electron–phonon coupling, the study of which is crucial for the understanding of their electronic and optical properties.