Animated sequence of snapshots from a MD simulation of the ejection of carbon nanotubes in MAPLE
MAPLE target contains a network of bundles composed of 150 nm long CNTs, laser fluence is 2.3 times above the ablation threshold
nanotubes are shown as red cylinders, matrix molecules are shown as small gray dots
This animation shows the ejection of carbon nanotubes from a MAPLE target containing a network of interconnected CNT bundles.
A large tangle of CNT bundles with the total mass of about 50 MDa is separated from the continuous network and entrained with
the matrix plume. No significant splitting and thinning of individual CNT bundles in the ejection process is observed in the
simulation. The survival of large bundles, where the CNTs are held together by relatively weak van der Waals forces, suggests
that fragile structural elements or molecular agglomerates with complex secondary structures may be transferred and deposited
to the substrate with the MAPLE technique.
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