Who should be given the credit for the discovery of carbon nanotubes?
Marc Monthioux and Vladimir L. Kuznetsov: Who should be given the credit for the discovery of carbon nanotubes?, Carbon 44(9), 1621-1623, August 2006.
Open access version, provided by author
DOI
http://jsmallsystems.org/hss/2006/1 (CitationLink)
Due to a unique combination of physical properties and potential
applications, carbon nanotubes have evolved into one of the hottest
research topics today. Most publications on nanotubes refer back to the
article by Sumio Iijima, published in Nature 354 (1991) 56, which
started the present "nanotube boom".
This article reviews some of the earlier publications, which reported
likely synthesis and observation of nanotubes and related filamentous
structures. The finite list of references will probably inspire further
discussion. In spite of several inaccurate technical statements, this
intriguing review makes a point by illustrating that a discovery often
needs to await its time to cause a large societal impact.
Endorsed by three publishers as what they consider a Highlight in Small Systems
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