CARBON NANOTUBE BASED CABLING
Systems and methods presented herein provide reduced weight cabling using carbon nanotubes. In one embodiment, a cable comprises a conductive core comprising a strand of carbon nanotubes electroplated with silver and copper, a shielding surrounding the core along a length of the cable, and a jacket surrounding the shielding along the length of the cable.
1 . A cable, comprising:
a conductive core comprising a strand of carbon nanotubes electroplated with silver and copper;
a shielding surrounding the core along a length of the cable; and
a jacket surrounding the shielding along the length of the cable.
2 . The cable of claim 1 , further comprising:
a dielectric between the core and the shielding and surrounding the core along a length of the cable.
3 . The cable of claim 2 , wherein:
the dielectric comprises an expanded Polytetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE) tape wrapped about the core along the length of the cable.
4 . The cable of claim 3 , wherein:
the dielectric comprises an impedance that is pre-determined based on a thickness of the wrapping about the core.
5 . The cable of claim 1 , wherein:
the shielding is configured from a metal braiding, electroplated carbon nanotubes that have been braided, electroplated carbon nanotube paper, metal foil, or any combination thereof.
6 . The cable of claim 1 , further comprising:
an insulator configured between the core and the shielding and surrounding the core along the length of the cable.
7 . The cable of claim 6 , further comprising:
another conductive core configured with another insulator and comprising a strand of carbon nanotubes electroplated with silver and copper.
8 . The cable of claim 7 , wherein:
the two cores are configured as a twisted pair, part of a category 5 cable configuration, or part of a category 6 cable configuration.
9 . The cable of claim 1 , wherein:
the shielding is a first shielding; and
the cable further comprises a second shielding configured between the first shielding and the jacket.
10 . The cable of claim 1 , wherein:
the cable is a coaxial cable.
11 . The cable of claim 10 , wherein:
the coaxial cable is operable to pass frequencies between about 100 MHz and 16 GHz.
12 . A cable production method, comprising:
configuring a plurality of carbon nanotubes into a strand;
electroplating the strand of carbon nanotubes with silver and copper to form a conductive core;
providing a shielding around the strand of electroplated carbon nanotubes along the length of the cable; and
surrounding the shielding with a jacket along the length of the cable.
13 . The method of claim 12 , further comprising:
wrapping the core along a length of the cable with an expanded Polytetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE) tape to form a dielectric, wherein the dielectric is between the core and the shielding.
14 . The method of claim 13 , further comprising:
configuring an impedance of the dielectric based on a thickness of the wrapping about the core.
15 . The method of claim 12 , wherein:
the shielding is configured from a metal braiding, electroplated carbon nanotubes that have been braided, electroplated carbon nanotube paper, metal foil, or any combination thereof.
16 . The method of claim 12 , further comprising:
terminating an end of the cable to configure the cable as a coaxial cable.
17 . The method of claim 16 , wherein:
the coaxial cable is operable to pass frequencies between about 100 MHz and 16 GHz.
18 . The method of claim 12 , further comprising:
surrounding the core with an insulator, wherein the insulator is configured between the core and the shielding.
19 . The method of claim 18 , further comprising:
configuring another plurality of carbon nanotubes into another strand;
electroplating the other strand of carbon nanotubes with silver and copper to form another conductive core; and
insulating the other conductive core;
20 . A cable, comprising:
a first conductive core comprising a strand of carbon nanotubes electroplated with silver and copper;
a first insulator surrounding the first core along a length of the cable;
a second conductive core comprising another strand of carbon nanotubes electroplated with silver and copper;
a second insulator surrounding the second core along the length of the cable;
a shielding surrounding the two insulators along the length of the cable; and
an outer jacket configured along the length of the cable, wherein:
the shielding is configured from electroplated carbon nanotubes that have been braided, electroplated carbon nanotube paper, or a combination thereof.