Temperature dependent electrical resistance and mesoscopic electronic transport mechanisms on aerographite and single-walled carbon nanotube aerogel

We investigate temperature dependent electrical resistance properties of aerographite and single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) aerogel in the temperature range of 2–300 K by employing the four-probe method with magnetic field effects (in the range 0–9 T, in steps of 2 T). The current–voltage (I–V) curves were taken for several temperatures varying from 5 to 300 K, and the electrical resistance values of aerographite and SWCNT aerogel were decreased from 7.30 Ω (5 K, 0 T) to 4.88 Ω (300 K, 0 T) and 22.56 Ω (5 K, 0 T) to 0.99 Ω (300 K, 0 T) with temperature increases, respectively. Experimental results show that the electrical resistance falls exponentially as the temperature increases. Such temperature dependence of R(T) points to a form of tunneling conduction or hopping. Two mesoscopic mechanisms for electronic transport, fluctuation-induced tunneling conduction (FITC) and variable range hopping (VRH), are employed to explicate possible electrical conduction mechanisms occurring in aerographite and SWCNT aerogel, respectively. These mainly result in disorder-induced symmetry-breaking, which are modified by their structural symmetries and electronic band structures, both play important roles in temperature dependent electrical resistance properties of aerographite and SWCNT aerogel. Characteristic parameters (T0, T1, and R0) have been estimated using the morphology and the uncertainty principle for aerographite and the percolation theory for SWCNT aerogel. While the FITC mechanism captures a wide temperature range of data for aerographite, the VRH model provides an explanation for SWCNT aerogel. This study provides groundwork for further development of carbon aerogel systems with high conductivity in large-scale preparation.