Churchill College has hosted a symposium on the science and applications of carbon nanotubes, attended by businessmen and academics from across Europe.

11 keynote speakers, including seven Cambridge academics, took part in the event and over 150 delegates attended. The speakers shared their findings on the synthesis, properties, and applications of nanotubes.

Prof. Alan Windle, at Cambridge's Department of Materials Science and Metallurgy, presented the latest developments in the spinning of long carbon nanotubes into a fibre, whereas Professor Gehan Amaratunga, at Cambridge's Department of Engineering, spoke about his work on the uses of carbon nanotubes in energy storage and conversion.

Nanotubes with both multiple and single walls can be used in solar cells. For inorganic solar cells, multiwall nanotubes can be used as an electrode, while single wall versions can assist with the function of semiconductors in organic solar cells.

They can also be used as an alternative to graphite in the creation of high capacity lithium batteries.

Professor Kostas Kostarelos spoke on the use of carbon nanotubes as a new method of drug delivery. His team discovered that nanotubes which had been treated to make them water-soluble were excreted as urine, unlike those that were untreated. The nanotubes were absorbed equally well regardless of the cell in question.

The one day symposium was held to allow researches to exchange ideas with fellow scientists from Cambridge and abroad, as well as industry delegates. It was conceived and organised by students and post-doctoral researchers at Cambridge.

Carbon nanotubes consist of a special arrangement of carbon atoms. Normally, these are arranged hexagonally and layered in sheets. In nanotubes, however, the same hexagonal pattern is arranged in a cylinder.

This arrangement is extremely strong, a good conductor of electricity and heat, and very resistant to acidic and alkaline chemicals. Given these attributes, the nanotubes have many potential applications, including use in electronic devices. Research on them has been conducted in various Cambridge departments.

The symposium, which took place on 30th November, was sponsored by Churchill College, the academic journals Science and Nature, and several companies involved in the industry, including AIXTRON Nanoinstruments, Nokia and Siemens.

The proceedings of the symposium will be published and will also appear as a special issue of the International Journal of Material Forming.

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