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The weakly negative permittivity with low-frequency-dispersion behavior in percolative carbon nanotubes/epoxy nanocomposites at radio-frequency range

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Abstract

As one of the basic component materials of metamaterials, natural negative dielectric constant (permittivity) materials have attracted more and more attentions; however, the frequency-dispersion mechanism of negative permittivity, especially the preferable low-frequency-dispersion behavior, still needs to be further explored. In this work, we fabricated the carbon nanotubes (CNTs)/epoxy composites by mechanical mixing and pressure forming. By gradually controlling the CNT content, a percolation phenomenon occurred and the conductive mechanism was changed from hopping conductivity to metal-like conductivity. The Debye model was used to describe the dielectric relaxation when the CNT content was below the percolation threshold; the negative permittivity comes from the plasma oscillation of free electrons in CNT networks when the CNT content is exceeding the percolation threshold explained by Drude model; the equivalent circuit analysis was used to analyze a capacitive-inductive transition. Most importantly, a low-frequency-dispersion and weakly negative permittivity occurred in the composites when the CNT content was slightly higher than the percolation threshold, a new Debye-Drude model was put forward to explain the novel frequency dispersion phenomenon of negative permittivity. Our work provides a new method to explain the phenomenon of low-frequency dispersion and will facilitate applications of negative permittivity materials.

Graphical abstract

The low-frequency-dispersion weakly negative permittivity was achieved in the percolative composites slightly above percolation threshold, a new Debye-Drude model was put forward to explain the novel phenomenon

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Funding

This research is financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China [52101176], the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation [2020M671992], Postdoctoral Innovation Project of Shandong Province [202003031], Natural Science Foundation of Shandong Province [ZR2020QE006], Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation [2021A1515110883], Innovation Program of the Shanghai Municipal Education Commission [Grant No. 2019–01-07–00-10-E00053], Postdoctoral Applied Research Project of Qingdao, and support by State Key Laboratory of Bio-Fibers and Eco-Textiles (Qingdao University). The Deanship of Scientific Research at Umm Al-Qura University supported this work through Grant Code: (22UQU4320141DSR11).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Bio-Fibers and Eco-Textiles, Institute of Biochemical Engineering, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Qingdao University, Qingdao, 266071, China

    Mingxiang Liu, Peitao Xie, Weiting Li & Chunzhao Liu

  2. Department of Chemistry, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China

    Haikun Wu & Yan Wu

  3. Foshan (Southern China) Institute for New Materials, Foshan, 528200, People’s Republic of China

    Peitao Xie

  4. Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Applied Science, Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah, 24230, Saudi Arabia

    Rami Adel Pashameah

  5. Department of Chemistry, College of Science, Taif University, P.O. Box 11099, Taif, 21944, Saudi Arabia

    Hala M. Abo-Dief

  6. Department of Chemistry, Turabah University College, Taif University, P.O.Box 11099, Taif, 21944, Saudi Arabia

    Salah M. El-Bahy

  7. Shandong Sinocera Functional Material Co., LTD, Dongying, 257100, People’s Republic of China

    Yulei Wei

  8. The 8511 Research Institute of China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation Limited (CASIC), Nanjing, 210007, People’s Republic of China

    Guixian Li

  9. College of Materials Science and Engineering, Taiyuan University of Science and Technology, Taiyuan, 030024, China

    Weiting Li

  10. School of Chemical Engineering & Advanced Materials, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, Australia

    Gemeng Liang

  11. College of Ocean Science and Engineering, Shanghai Maritime University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China

    Kai Sun & Runhua Fan

Authors
  1. Mingxiang Liu
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  2. Haikun Wu
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  3. Yan Wu
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  4. Peitao Xie
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  5. Rami Adel Pashameah
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  6. Hala M. Abo-Dief
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  7. Salah M. El-Bahy
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  8. Yulei Wei
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  9. Guixian Li
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  11. Gemeng Liang
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  12. Chunzhao Liu
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  13. Kai Sun
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  14. Runhua Fan
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection, and analysis were performed by M. Liu, H. Wu, Y. Wu, G. Li, W. Li, and Y. Wei. M. Liu and P. Xie wrote the manuscript. C. Liu, G. Liang, K. Sun, R. Fan, and P. Xie gave the meaningful advice in the analysis of the performance of nanocomposites. P. Xie, R. Pashameah, H. Abo-Dief, S. El-Bahy, and R. Fan gave financial support for this work. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Peitao Xie or Chunzhao Liu.

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Liu, M., Wu, H., Wu, Y. et al. The weakly negative permittivity with low-frequency-dispersion behavior in percolative carbon nanotubes/epoxy nanocomposites at radio-frequency range. Adv Compos Hybrid Mater 5, 2021–2030 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42114-022-00541-z

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