  We have performed experiments on single-wall carbon nanotube (SWNT) networks
and compared with density-functional theory (DFT) calculations to identify the
microscopic origin of the observed sensitivity of the network conductivity to
physisorbed O2 and N2. Previous DFT calculations of the transmission function
for isolated pristine SWNTs have found physisorbed molecules have little
influence on their conductivity. However, by calculating the four-terminal
transmission function of crossed SWNT junctions, we show that physisorbed O2
and N2 do affect the junction's conductance. This may be understood as an
increase in tunneling probability due to hopping via molecular orbitals. We
find the effect is substantially larger for O2 than for N2, and for
semiconducting rather than metallic SWNTs junctions, in agreement with
experiment.
