Low-temperature magnetoresistance of individual single-walled carbon nanotubes: A numerical study

Abstract

The low-temperature magnetoresistance induced by an axial magnetic field in individual single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) is studied numerically based on Boltzmann transport equation and \ensuremath{\pi} electronic energy dispersion relations for individual SWNTs as well as taking one-dimensional weak localization (WL) into account. It is shown that the Altshuler-Aronov-Spivak effect related to WL is much weaker in individual SWNTs than in individual multiwalled carbon nanotubes, whereas the Aharonov-Bohm (AB) effect related to tubular energy band structure is stronger in individual SWNTs when the conducting electrons occupy lower energy levels, but this effect weakens rapidly as conducting electron energy increases. This suggests that only the AB effect can be observed remarkably in the states of the conducting electrons with lower energy.