Breaking of Nanotube Symmetry by Substrate Polarization

Abstract

Substrate and nanotube polarization are shown to change qualitatively a nanotube bandstructure. The effect is studied in a linear approximation in an external potential which causes the changes. A work function difference between the nanotube and gold surface is estimated to be large enough to break the band symmetry and lift a degeneracy of a lowest but one subband of a metallic nanotube. This subband splitting for [10,10] nanotube is about 50 meV in absence of other external potential.