A seed-mediated growth of gold nanoparticles inside carbon nanotube fibers for fabrication of multifunctional nanohybrid fibers with enhanced mechanical and electrical properties.

The seed-mediated growth strategy of Au nanoparticles (Au NPs) inside carbon nanotube (CNT) fibers is demonstrated to greatly improve their mechanical and electrical properties and provide a function for catalytic applications. The resulting Au NP@CNT nanocomposite fibers exhibit 100% knot efficiency, catalytic activity and considerably enhanced modulus, tensile strength, and electrical conductivity from 7 GPa, 109 MPa and 1300 S cm-1 to 24 GPa, 351 MPa and 3600 S cm-1, respectively. The enhancement mechanism is also revealed by systematic characterization and theoretical simulations.