
Doped nanotube fibers push toward copper-like wiring performance.
Researchers doped bulk double-walled carbon nanotube fibers with tetrachloroaluminate (AlCl4−), boosting mean conductivity about 10x on average (up to 15x in the best fibers) and reaching roughly 70% of aluminum’s conductivity; when normalized by density, the doped fibers can outperform copper, suggesting potential for lightweight, high-capacity wiring. However, the dopant is air-sensitive and short-lived (weeks) unless the fibers are polymer-coated, posing stability and scalability challenges even as the approach identifies a promising dopant strategy.







