Linear carbon atomic wires are one-dimensional carbon-based systems which, thanks to their particular thermal, optical, electronic and mechanical properties, are considered extremely interesting for their potential applications in various fields.

The European project EspLORE, coordinated by Prof. Carlo S. Casari of the Department of Energy of Politecnico di Milano, aims to develop innovative materials by exploiting the potential of carbon atomic wires and exploring their possible applications for advanced technologies in the energy sector.

As part of the project, research has been developed to study the response of carbon chains to a specific light excitation in the ultraviolet spectrum, a type of light that these materials absorb in a very receptive manner. The vibrational response of the carbon chains and the influence of UV light on the electronic properties of this material have been studied using the instrumentation available at the IUVS synchrotron light line at the “Elettra” synchrotron in Trieste.

The results of the study, carried out by Prof. Casari and the ESPLORE project team in collaboration with Professors Chiara Castiglioni and Matteo M. S. Tommasini of the FunMat Lab (Department of Chemistry, Materials and Chemical Engineering “Giulio Natta” of Politecnico di Milano) and Barbara Rossi of Sincrotrone Elettra in Trieste, have been published in the prestigious international scientific journal Nature Communications in an article entitled “Electron-phonon coupling and vibrational properties of size-selected linear carbon chains by resonance Raman scattering”.

The peculiarity of these atomic carbon chains and the investigation technique used have allowed us to obtain information on their fundamental properties, as a basis for future implementations in various fields of application,

explains Casari.

The structural simplicity of these atomic filaments allows an elegant and rigorous verification of one of the fundamental theories of resonant Raman spectroscopy, applied here for the first time to transitions involving multiple vibrational quanta,

commented Matteo Tommasini and Chiara Castiglioni.