Abstract

Sensor coverage will benefit from finding better ways to communicate among smaller sensors. Also, as development in nanotechnology progresses, the need for low-cost, robust, reliable communication among nano-machines will become apparent. Communication and signaling within newly engineered inorganic and biological nano-systems will allow for extremely dense and efficient distributed operation. This paper examines these potential benefits from the perspective of using individual nanotubes within random carbon nanotube networks (CNT) to carry information. One may imagine small CNT networks with functionalized nanotubes sensing multiple elements inserted into a cell in vivo. The information from each nanotube sensor can be fused within the network. This is clearly distinct from traditional, potentially less efficient, approaches of using CNT networks to construct transistors. The CNT network and routing of information is an integral part of the physical layer. Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNT) are modeled as linear tubes positioned in two dimensions via central coordinates with a specified angle. A network graph is extracted from the layout of the tubes and the ability to route information at the level of individual nanotubes is considered. The impact of random tube characteristics, such as location and angle, upon the corresponding network graph and its impacts are examined