Observation of site selective binding in a polymer nanotube composite

The nucleation and crystalline growth of a semi-conjugated polymer from nanotube defect sites were demonstrated. In addition, each nanotube has a uniform coating of polymer. This coating is structured and periodic, implying a correlation between the coating and the nanotube beneath. This demonstrates that these constituents are not only miscible but are actually bound to each other in a well-organized and structure manner. Potential benefits of nanotubes are that it makes the polymer less susceptible to thermal degradation, more conductive and mechanically stronger.